Hailstorm Vol 2
by Masked Spider
Summary: The second semester at U.A. has begun for Clay Cero and Slade Mason as they gear up to take on new assignments, new villains, the more advanced internships known as work studies and, the most evil of all, school work! So come along as these two friends continue their journey to become pro heroes! (note: read My Hero Academia Hailstorm first).
1. Work Study Madness

**My Hero Academia Hailstorm: Vol. 2**

**Disclaimer: All Properties belong to their respective owners**

Near Gang Orca's Hero Agency

The world has definitely changed. An atmosphere of unease seemed to permeate the very air throughout the country of Japan as a single question floated around in the backs of everyone's mind. 'What will we do now that All Might's gone?' For most civilians they went about their daily lives like before, seeking comfort and what security that could be found within the familiarity of their routines.

But for the lawless ones who'd been in hiding or the people who'd ordinarily think twice about committing a crime it was different. It was a time of opportunity. Such individuals who'd exercise their quirks for personal gain were known as villains, and they already had an answer to the question of what to do. Come out of the wood work, take what you want and raise havoc. That was exactly the plan of three villains as they rushed out of an electronics store with an entire cash register and whatever items of value they could carry.

"We got the loot!" yelled the lead criminal, a man with a blue bald head which was sporting pointed antennae, "get ready to hustle!" He was directing this order to another villain, a guy with an egg-shaped body with long arms and legs sitting in a van with the engine running. As soon as the group of three piled into the open side door of the vehicle the egg villain floored the gas pedal.

"Hey what's the hold up?" Questioned one of the running villains, a man with extraordinarily long hair which covered his entire face, "why aren't we going anywhere?" Indeed no matter how hard the egg man pressed down on the gas the only response he got was the sound of screeching tires and the straining mechanics of the engine.

"It's like we're hung on something behind us," said the oval-shaped man as he tried in vain to get the van moving. The third runner, a person with one large purple eye where his face was supposed to be looked out the back window to see what the issue was. Something did have a hold on the back of the van, a rather tall high school student with a muscular build and very short hair. He was simply standing there with his hand on the van's trailer hitch looking almost bored with the situation. "It's some snot-nosed kid!"

"Well get out there and get rid of him," ordered the blue man. The two criminals opened the side doors on the van only to have them immediately closed back on them by an unseen force from outside their vehicle. "What the!" Outside of the van, the teen who was holding the hitch looked up at his friend standing on the roof.

"Are you ready up there?" He asked as his dark haired friend directed some clouds in front of the van to not only cover the windshield but also to form a small ramp a few feet away.

"Let it roll," said the cloud user as he leapt off the van, propelled by cloud boots. The larger teen did as instructed and released the hitch, causing the vehicle to lurch forward at high speed until its wheel came into contact with the ramp. The sudden shift in weight and position caused the van to topple over onto its side from the momentum and slide for several feet until it was stopped by a mass of clouds covering it.

"Ow, what the heck!" Screamed one of the villains. "Let us out of here!" yelled one of the others.

"You want out, you got it," said the cloud boy as he released the part of his quirk that was holding the door closed. The small gang of criminals slid the door open and burst out, only to be met with half a dozen men in black skintight suits with multiple eyes and gauntlet-like weapons known as cement guns pointed at their faces. Needless to say the group surrendered quite quickly after that.

"Man I thought the dumb criminals only came out when All Might was still an acting hero," said the large teen known as Slade Mason. "You'd have to be low on the IQ scale or incredibly diabolically smart to even think something like this would be a good idea."

"Depends on how you look at it," said the cloud user whose name was Clay Cero, "Now that All Might's retired the criminals who think they never had a shot before are taking it. Turns out the one good idea they had was not committing a crime because they knew All Might was around."

"Well these knuckleheads thought it was a good idea to commit a crime literally two blocks from Gang Orca's hero agency," Slade pointed out, "villains may be coming out of the woodwork but aside from a few exceptions they ain't getting any smarter."

"I couldn't agree more," said a large figure behind the two boys as they turned around to see a man whose head was that of an Orca's wearing a suit that seemed to denote him as a member of a crime family. "And good job on knowing when and how to exercise the authority of your provisional licenses."

"Gang Orca sir!" both Slade and Clay said as they practically snapped to attention.

"No need to be so formal," said the whale hero with a dismissive wave, "it's good to see the two of you again. Tell me, what brings you up here so close to my agency?"

"Well it's like this," said Clay as he began to explain some of the events which brought them to the decision to do a work study.

U.A. High School's Class 1A: A Few Days Ago

"To put it simply, the hero work studies are more advanced versions of the internships you did during the first semester," explained Aizawa as the class sat and listened. "You'll not only help out pros on the streets but also take part in investigations. This matter was discussed at length with both the principal and your teachers and we all reached the same consensus. It's just too soon and they should be canceled immediately." It took a moment for their sensei's words to sink in, but when they did the response was something else.

"WHAAAAAAT!" exclaimed the entire class after hearing the news.

"But we've already had meetings for them," said Kirishima in disbelief.

"I mean it makes sense to a degree when you consider why we had to move into the dorms in the first place," said Kaminari, surprisingly sounding somewhat smart for a change. The only one who seemed to be happy about this news was Bakugou simply because he wouldn't be getting to do one anyway.

"There have been some who think otherwise about such a protective outlook," continued Aizawa as if he hadn't heard a word, "which is why a compromise has been reached. For those who wish to take part in work studies, you'll be required to pick one with a good track record. Otherwise you won't be allowed to participate."

"Dammit!" exclaimed Bakugou as he realized some would indeed get to do a work study while he couldn't.

"So who are you going with?" Questioned Clay as he looked over to his friend Midoriya.

"Oh, me," said the green-haired boy as he was snapped out of his thoughts by the question, "well I tried calling Gran Torino to see if he'd take me on, but he said he was busy."

"Ouch that's tough," said Slade, "If you want we could try and get you in with us at one of the agencies we're thinking about going too."

"Actually before he hung up Gran Torino gave me a suggestion," said Midoriya, "he wants me to try All Might's old sidekick Sir Nighteye."

"That guy," said Clay with a hint of surprise, "you probably already know this but he's a bit on the stiff side, at least when he's out in public. From what I heard he and All Might had something of a falling out, but don't take my word for it."

"It's still a chance I need to take," replied Midoriya, "Sir Nighteye is one of the few heroes who actually worked directly under All Might so he'll know how to help me improve my quirk."

"Assuming he knows how it works in the first place," Slade pointed out, "just because he was All Might's sidekick doesn't necessarily mean he helped him train. Add on to that, we don't even know if he'll accept you into a work study in the first place."

"With All Might introducing us I don't see why he wouldn't," said Midoriya, "but it's the best way I can think of to get stronger in a short amount of time."

"Well whatever the case I guess if you're that dead set on it there's not much else we can say but good luck," said Clay as he crossed his arms and leaned back in his seat.

"Thanks guys," said Midoriya, "Oh I've been meaning to ask, who have you picked for your work studies?"

"Well it's a bit of a long shot for us too, but after browsing the list of available pros approved by the school, we managed to narrow it down to about two or three possible matches like Gang Orca and Kamui Woods," explained Slade.

"Assuming Gang Orca's forgiven me for electrocuting him at the provisional license exam," commented Clay with a downcast expression. For whatever reason, this got a bit of a laugh out of the three of them as they exited the classroom for the day.

That Weekend: U.A. Heights Alliance

As planned, Midoriya went to see All Might in the faculty office as soon as class was over. But things didn't go quite as well as he'd hoped. The former number one hero surprisingly refused to introduce Midoriya to Sir Nighteye. Apparently he was actually one of the teachers who'd voted against the students going into the work studies in the first place and he also believed his protégé had enough of a work load with just hero school and working on his new shoot style form of combat. Though it appeared the biggest reason he wouldn't introduce Midoriya himself was that he didn't want to see his former sidekick due to the falling out they'd had a few years prior.

But as the saying goes there was a silver lining behind All Might's refusal, the number one student at U. A. Mirio Togata. The strongest of the big three had been interning at Nighteye's agency for over a year now and after a talk with All Might and Midoriya he was more than willing to set up a meeting for the current holder of one-for-all. This just left one little detail to tie up the rest of the loose ends.'I really shouldn't have gotten up so early on a weekend,' Clay groaned internally as he sat on the couch closest to the door, yawning as he remembered the conversation from earlier in the week.

Flashback: A Couple Nights Ago

"You want us to come with you to Nighteye's agency this weekend?" Questioned Slade as he, Clay and Midoriya sat at one of the kitchen tables eating some of the density quirk user's extra ramen.

"If you guys aren't too busy," replied Midoriya, "Mirio's gonna be there with me but you guys have always been good at helping me keep calm for these sorts of things. And if you both come along you might get the chance to work with All Might's former sidekick too, assuming he'll take all three of us."

"We are admittedly still looking for an agency to do our work studies at," said Clay between helpings of his food, "but we've already got a meeting lined up for this weekend at Gang Orca's agency on Sunday. No guarantees obviously but it's still worth a shot."

"That won't be a problem," said Midoriya, "Mirio and I are meeting Sir Nighteye on Saturday so you could both come along for that."

"I can't," said Slade as he pulled out some of his notes, "I already agreed to help Momo with a group study session on Saturday. Though Clay doesn't have any plans as far as I know."

"Well I wouldn't say I have no plans," explained the cloud user, "I was just hoping to rest up a bit on Saturday and maybe get some training in."

"Hey Clay!" Called Mina excitedly as she walked in the door, "Do you have anything in particular going on this weekend?!"

"Uh, unfortunately," he replied quickly before turning back to his friend and whispering, "what time is this meeting of yours exactly?"

End Flashback

Yep, he was doing this to help a friend and to avoid Mina and Jirou. It wasn't that he disliked being around them, they'd just been strangely clingy ever since the provisional licensing exam had ended. With no huge tests to worry about or special training to endure the pink girl had taken to tackling him in the hallway on occasion with a good morning hug while the other, normally aloof girl would make an active effort to insure Clay was aware of her presence. It was fine if it was one or the other at a time but when both of them were in the same room the atmosphere seemed, tense in a way.

The cloud user himself had a couple of hunches on why they were suddenly behaving like this but most of them seemed farfetched, at least in his mind. Either way he was here now reading up on their destination with his phone while waiting for Midoriya to show up so they could head over to Sir Nighteye's agency with Mirio. The only noises that were interrupting the peaceful atmosphere were the sounds of a recently awakened Kaminari and Mineta brushing their teeth while talking to Tokoyami and Kirishima near the kitchen. At least it was until a green blur came speeding past all of them, heading right for the door.

"Morning!" Called Midoriya as he passed Kaminari and the others. "Let's go Clay!" 'I knew he was eager but that's something else,' thought the cloud user with a sigh as he got up and used one of his clouds to fly after his friend before he got too far away.

The Hero Agency of Sir Nighteye

The ride over took an hour by train and required a bit of walking, but before long, the three found themselves standing in front of a moderately large office building with several windows that served as the headquarters for the pro hero. "And here we are," said Mirio as he pointed to the entrance of the building, "Sir should be in at this hour if he hasn't been called in for an emergency and-are you okay man?" The reason he asked was the green-haired boy he'd brought along was currently trembling quite visibly and seemed to not be breathing much.

"Well I suppose I should give you credit for making it this far before freaking out a little," said Clay as he put a hand on his friend's shoulder, "you've got nothing to worry about. Just loosen up a bit and treat this like a meeting with one of the teachers back at U. A."

"But not too loose either," added Mirio with his usual laid back demeanor, "Sir is rather strict after all."

"Yeah I've heard all about it," replied Midoriya as he broke out of his trance, "he's actually famous for being demanding on others and himself. He possesses such a sharp gaze that I shiver just by seeing him on TV. Truthfully he looks absolutely severe." Clay couldn't agree more with that assessment. The man's appearance itself wasn't anything too unique as his hero costume consisted of a white suit with black shoes and a red tie.

His short hair was green with yellow highlights and was neatly combed in a basic part one would expect from a business man and the glasses he wore only added to that image. No what made him stick out among some of the other heroes was his intense gaze. "That is all true," stated Mirio, "but there's another side to the man that no one from the press ever gets to see."

"Does he have a thing for cats too?" Questioned Clay, already certain this man would get along great with his Uncle Aizawa.

"Not exactly," replied Mirio, "You see the best way to get acknowledged by him at this meeting, would be to make him laugh. Do that and he'll definitely approve of you." 'Well shit,' thought Clay as he tried to remember one time that Midoriya ever intentionally made him laugh and came up with nothing.

"What do you mean by make him laugh?" Asked the green-haired boy.

"It's exactly what it sounds like," said Mirio as he opened the door and they began walking into the lobby, "despite him being so stern he really values having a good sense of humor for some odd reason. I guess you could call it irony or something like that."

"Depends on what he likes to laugh at," commented Clay as they began trekking up a rather long spiral staircase.

"Well whatever the case, the most I can do is introduce you to him," said Mirio, "It's up to Sir to decide whether or not he wants you to intern here. So from here on out you'll need to think of a way to make him acknowledge you."

"I've been wondering something," said Midoriya as he gave voice to one of the thoughts that just occurred to him, "why did you decide to introduce me to Sir in the first place?"

"Well this is your dream isn't it?" Mirio questioned back, "and right now you're fighting to make it a reality. But you've run into a bit of trouble in the form of getting a work study. So basically it's Heroing 101, which is to help out someone who's in trouble."

"That makes sense and thank you for coming along too Clay," replied Midoriya with a smile.

"No problem," replied the cloud wielder, "hero or not one should always be willing to help out a friend in need." Conversation halted then as the group of three students arrived at a door at the end of a long hallway.

"And here we are," said the phase quirk user as he pointed at the door, "Sir Nighteye is beyond this door, so if you intend to get stronger all you need to do is walk through it!"

"And don't worry too much about the intimidating gaze thing," said Clay, "I grew up with an Uncle that wields an eye quirk so I'm used to that sort of thing. We'll be right behind ya if you happen to get tongue-tied."

"Thanks again guys," said Midoriya with a look of determination as he walked towards the door and pushed it open forcefully. Whatever they'd been expecting to see, Sir Nighteye doing tickle torture on a blue girl wearing a white and blue costume with gold lines, a very visible midriff and a see-through gasmask was not it. "What kind of agency is this?!"

"See, this is how loud and energetic you can get when you put your mind to it," said Sir Nighteye as he adjusted the setting the on the vertical table he had the girl strapped too. The blue girl was currently laughing uncontrollably as a pair of what appeared to be pink cat tails was being used to tickle her on each side.

"Mirio what in the world is happening right now?" Questioned Midoriya with a gaping expression.

"That's his sidekick Bubble Girl strapped to the tickle machine there," explained Mirio, "It looks like she wasn't able to make him laugh."

"Should we come back later," asked Clay, "I'd hate to interrupt whatever fetish torture he's got going on here." The chances of that happening dropped to zero as the pro hero suddenly turned his intense gaze on all of them. Midoriya was understandably terrified while Clay instinctively tensed, just short of raising his guard. 'That look of his seems a bit more unnerving in person, admittedly,' thought Clay as his eyes shifted to his green-haired friend.

He didn't seem to want to move at first, but eventually he regained his composure and straightened his hair out a bit. 'Wait a sec, he's not really gonna try that is he?' Much to Clay and Mirio's horror, when Midoriya raised his head he was smiling. Or to be more precise, he was doing his best All Might face and when he spoke it was his best imitation of the former pro's voice. "I'm Izuku Midoriya! I am here to ask for a work study!"

'Of all the jokes to pull out of your ass you go with the All Might impersonation!' Thought the cloud wielder as he glanced at Mirio's own shocked expression. The two of them were likely thinking the same thing: Izuku Midoriya wasn't funny in the slightest at this moment. "And just what is this display boy!" Demanded Nighteye as his eyes contorted in anger, "Are you mocking the great All Mightt?!"

'In hindsight,' thought Clay, 'maybe we should've gone over this whole laughing thing before coming here.' It would make what happened next all the more complicated.

**And here it is, the first chapter of Hail Storm Vol. 2! Now I'd best let everyone know up front that the first few chapters are gonna be a little shorter than the chapters of my more recent stories as the first couple episodes of the show are starting off a little slow. But with luck it'll all start picking up very soon. So feel free to leave a comment or review about what you like/dislike about these chapters or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as Clay gives Sir Nighteye an honest opinion of his working environment. 'Til then. **


	2. Winning Approval

**Winning Approval **

**Hello everyone and welcome to the second chapter of my latest volume! It is also the first time I'll be answering guest reviews for this one so here goes. To guest reader Hiro: I split the story up into multiple volumes because the first one is over fifty chapters now and it just seemed like adding more to that would be excessive and possibly discourage readers who don't have as much time on their hands, at least in my opinion. Now, on to the chapter!**

Hero Office of Sir Nighteye: Midday

Over the years Clay had learned that sometimes one had to rely on the slightly unconventional in order to overcome some obstacles. In the current case of his friend, Midoriya was attempting to make his possible recruiter laugh by using his very own All Might impression which he'd practiced and honed to the best of his ability over the years. Given that the pro hero Sir Nighteye was the former sidekick of All Might, Clay could see why he thought something like that might work. But judging by the look on the man's face, the plan had backfired horribly.

"You have some nerve doing that with your face," said Nighteye menacingly as he adjusted his glasses and stepped forward, "is this all some kind of joke to you?" 'I thought that was the whole point?' Mused Clay.

"W-Well not exactly," said Midoriya, still doing his All Might voice as he took a step back.

"You would do such a blasphemous impersonation in front of the former sidekick of All Might!" Said Nighteye as he reached out suddenly. "The location of All Might's wrinkles on your face are all wrong." Everyone in the room was understandably taken aback by this. "In his earlier days All Might's crow's feet were only point six centimeters long. From the silver age onward they were point eight. Even unlicensed merchandise is able to have the correct wrinkles in the correct era these days while you don't appear to even know that much!"

'I never knew Midoriya could have a rival on who's the bigger All Might fan,' thought Clay as he glanced around the man's square office which was covered in memorabilia dedicated to the retired number one hero. Cardboard cutouts, bookshelves filled to the brim with All Might factoids and magazines and even a tenth anniversary poster that, if Clay recalled his friend's words correctly, had never been on sale to the public. "I don't really care for this farce any longer so you may see yourself out. Mirio, who's the other-?"

"The vinegar river incident," Midoriya said suddenly, drawing the pro's attention. "Are you aware of it Sir? It was when a middle schooler whose quirk changed the properties of water was drowning in a river until All Might swooped in and saved him. In the process the drowning kid panicked and turned the river into vinegar that got into All Might's eyes. His face had a slightly different appearance that day."

'Probably because vinegar was burning the shit out of his sockets,' Clay almost said out loud before stopping himself. "His smile and the way his eyes were narrowed at the time was the face I chose to impersonate earlier. 'Your preferred All Might face was him cringing in pain from vinegar in his eyes? Now the thought of that might actually make someone laugh.'

"I remember this rescue," said Nighteye as he turned back towards them, "it occurred before I teamed up with All Might and I believe it was mentioned on a widely run television show titled 'A Look Back.'"

"I love that show!" exclaimed Midoriya happily as he pumped both fists in the air. "Many people say it was a boring save because there weren't any villains but I really like it for some reason. My favorite part was the witty response he gave after the kid he rescued thanked him."

"'I'm the one who should be thanking you,'" Quoted Nighteye, "'my skin feels ten years younger now.'"

"Yes exactly!" exclaimed Midoriya excitedly, "It was a perfect one-liner."

"I see, so you were testing me then were you," said Nighteye with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh no," said the green-haired boy as he began waving his arms frantically, "It's just that sense All Might is a teacher at our school I don't actually get to geek out that much about him." 'Could've fooled me,' thought Clay as he tuned out the rest of the conversation and followed Mirio over to where Bubble Girl was currently restrained at.

"Who's that Mirio," groaned Bubble Girl as the two students undid the restraints and helped her down from the tickle machine, "He's kind of loud."

"He's one of the underclassmen I brought from my school," explained Mirio in his usual cheerful voice. "His name's Izuku Midoriya."

"And whose this guy then," she asked, seeming to notice Clay just now.

"Clay Cero," replied the U.A. student, "I guess you could say I'm here for, emotional support, Among other things. Though that might not be necessary anymore."

"He failed miserably at making Sir laugh," noted Mirio as he watched the conversation, "but he is still making a fairly good first impression." 'Let's hope he can keep it up,' thought Clay as Sir Nighteye took a seat behind his desk.

"So you're hoping to do a work study with my agency, interesting," said the pro as he twiddled his fingers on his desk, "you believe doing so will make you stronger somehow?"

"Yes sir, so please allow me to do one here!" Midoriya almost begged.

"We'll of course need to draw up a cont-," Nighteye started to say before Midoriya reached into the backpack he'd brought with him.

"I've got one right here actually," said the green-haired boy as he rummaged around in the yellow bag he'd brought with him.

"You will also not interrupt me while I'm speaking," said the Pro, prompting a quick apology from the U.A. student. "Now once I stamp this document you shall officially be employed by my agency for a work study. These won't be like the week-long internships you took on so casually. You're required to work here a minimum of four months and while you will receive wages your own academic responsibilities will no doubt suffer due to frequent absences. Your other classmates will very likely pull ahead of you during this time."

"I do realize that," said Midoriya, "but I'll never make it to number one as a hero if I worry about what everyone else is doing." Nighteye's reaction to this was to stamp the space right next to the contract on his desk. "Um sir, I think you missed."

"I missed because I have no intention of approving this," said the pro as he began tapping the stamp on his desk over and over again, "I understand how my agency will prove beneficial to you but what benefit will you bring to my agency? Currently this office runs rather smoothly with two sidekicks and a single work study in my employ, so why should I add you? What can you contribute to this agency and to society? If your intention is to be acknowledged then you must be able to answer such questions as these unequivocally! All Might showed his worth by using his power and humor to give hope to those living in fear of criminals, which is why the world acknowledged him."

"You're right," said Midoriya with a tone of realization, "I do have to figure out how I can best help the world."

"Then show me what you can do," said Sir Nighteye as he stood up from his desk, "with your actions and not just words. And you standing in the corner over there, do you also intend to do a work study at this agency?"

"Given that I walked in on a grown ass man tickle torturing his sidekick to death," replied Clay with a shrug, "I'm of the opinion that working here would be about as enjoyable as a sand paper dildo. You don't have one of those lurking around here with the tickle machine do you?"

"Interesting," said Nighteye with a slight quirk at the corner of his mouth, "you actually seem to possess a bit of humor within you. Well if you change your mind you can try this test after your friend. What you need to do is take this seal from me within three minutes and stamp the contract yourself."

"So you mean you're really," Midoriya said with a hopeful expression.

"I'm giving you a chance to work at my agency even though you don't possess an ounce of humor in your body," said Nighteye, "As for you three, leave the room for now and wait outside."

"Sir yes sir," said Mirio and Bubble Girl while Clay simply nodded.

"Once more with some feeling," declared Nighteye.

"YES SIR!" repeated the sidekick and work study with a salute before exiting the room with the U. A. student right behind them. The trio walked down the hall for a few seconds before Bubble Girl spoke up.

"So did you have to do a practical interview to get into the agency?" Questioned Bubble Girl.

"Not really," said Mirio as he ran a hand through his hair, "Sir asked specifically for me so I didn't need to jump through any hoops to get my spot here."

"Wow, must be nice to be his golden boy," commented Bubble Girl as the U. A. student let out a laugh, "and I can't believe I'm actually jealous of a high schooler. Speaking of which, what's your story, uh, Cero was it?"

"As I mentioned before I was mostly here to help Midoriya in case his nerves got the better of him," explained Clay, "he's one of my oldest friends so I know how to calm him down when necessary. Even despite some of the crazy stuff we've been through since starting hero school he still chokes up on high pressure presentations like this."

"Well I'm impressed you almost got Sir to smile," said Mirio, "most people don't talk to him the way you just did."

"Like I said while I was in his office, I don't plan on doing a work study here," said Clay, "So I've got no reason to be terribly formal. As for my humor, I get it from my parents. They're actually very experienced in dealing with a stoic guy like that."

"Any tips on how to make it flow naturally?" Questioned Bubble Girl.

"Just don't think too hard about it and speak your mind I guess," replied Clay as he leaned against the wall next to a vending machine while Mirio ordered a drink from it. Bubble Girl took a seat on the bench next to the machine. "Truthfully it's a lot like anything else: the more you do it the better at it ya get. And I've bantered with some interesting people over the years." The sound of a large thump on the other side of the wall alerted them to what was currently happening in Nighteye's office. Midoriya was leaping around the room desperately trying to snatch the seal from him. So far without success.

"Wow, Sir is really stringing that poor kid along," noted Bubble Girl.

"I know right, he's definitely serious about this," said Mirio with his usual happy face.

"If I recall correctly," said Clay, "Sir Nighteye's quirk allows him to see into someone's future when certain conditions have been met. It lasts for about an hour which'll be far more time than he actually needs."

"Right on the money," said Mirio, "specifically he can see the choices someone will make, basically knowing their every move."

"Spectacular," said Clay with a sigh, "but since we're discussing the man I got something of a question. Why did he ask for you specifically? From what you told me and class 1A your skills didn't develop to the degree they are now until after you gained experience from your work study."

"Oh that," said Mirio, "who knows honestly? I guess he just saw my potential with his quirk or something."

"Riiiiight," said Clay as a final resounding bang was heard on the other side of the wall.

"Well that sounds like our cue to head back in," said Mirio as he and Bubble Girl hastily rushed back to Nighteye's office and burst through the door somewhat excitedly. "Cue our totally well-timed return!"

"You are done right?" Questioned Bubble Girl, "because that was a pretty loud, and decisive, bang on the wall just now." In fact as Clay looked around he noted a red trail of blood on the far wall near the tenth anniversary poster while the rest of the walls and even the ceiling had footprints on them. Add on to that some of the books and papers scattered about and it looked like a proper fight had indeed just occurred, with a surprising result.

"I'll take the boy Mirio," said Sir Nighteye as he moved his gaze from Midoriya, who was currently on the floor, to the entering trio.

"Awesome!" cheered Mirio and Clay before he could stop himself.

"What, but I wasn't able to accomplish either of the things you asked me to do?" Said a confused Midoriya from his position on the floor.

"I told you to take the seal from me and stamp the contract within three minutes, however," said Nighteye, "I did not say you'd be rejected if you happened to fail these objectives."

"I guess that means you managed to make him laugh after all," said Mirio as Clay helped his friend up from the floor.

"Truthfully I'd already decided I was taking you on the moment I heard you were coming here," explained the pro hero as he picked up the contract. "I was aware you weren't entirely lacking in skill and intellect but I still had to see it for myself. You see with the symbol of peace gone the people need a light that is not dim but dazzling. You'll come to see as you work here alongside professionals that despite All Might's mandate, you are not worthy of his power." He dropped the seal in Midoriya's hand and set the contract down in front of him while letting his words sink in.

'So this prick's whole plan is to make Midoriya give up,' thought Clay, 'and given how he said Midoriya wasn't worthy of his power, he knows about One for All. It makes a lot more sense now, he took on Mirio because he believes he should be the true successor to All Might.' The same line of thinking was probably going through his friend's head as he gazed at the seal in his hand. But the Midoriya Clay knew was not the type to give up easily and as he stamped the contract in front of him, the cloud user could tell he was gonna do everything in his power to prove Sir Nighteye wrong.

U.A. Heights Alliance: That Night

"Congratulations on finding an agency Deku!" complimented Uraraka as she, Midoriya, Clay, Slade and few other members of class 1A sat around on the couches in their night clothes. Everyone else was quick to give their congratulations and Iida even shook Midoriya's hand.

"Thanks a lot guys," replied the One for All holder with a smile.

"We should be thanking you really," said Iida as he tipped his glasses, "you're an inspiration for all of us."

"I'm wondering how the rest of us are supposed to compete with that," said Kaminari as he and some of the other boys of Class 1A approached, "I mean Sir Nighteye's agency with a personal recommendation from Mirio."

"I heard Clay here was even offered a possible position too," said Sero, "did you really make the guy laugh?"

"Like I explained to Slade and the others before a few certain people exaggerated it," Clay glanced at Mina, "he quirked his mouth into an almost smirk and said I possessed humor. Anyone who hangs around me for more than five minutes could've told him that."

"It's still pretty impressive on both your parts," said Sato, "I honestly don't know what's more unbelievable. Midoriya getting the work study or Clay turning it down."

"You'd understand if you saw Bubble Girl when she was strapped to a tickling machine," said Clay, "If I'm gonna laugh about something it'll be because I want too. After all, forced comedy isn't quite as funny as comedy that comes out naturally."

"I just wish I could find a work study," pouted Uraraka as she held her head up with her hands, "the school won't let me go with Gun Head's agency because he hasn't had enough interns."

"I've had the same problem trying to go with Selkie's internship," said Tsuyu.

"I can't even apply for Fourth Kind's agency because he doesn't take students for work studies," groaned Kirishima as he slumped over on the back of the couch.

"Are you having any luck getting past the requirements Slade," Asked Sero, "because a whole lot of places are already ruled out for us."

"Clay and I actually have a meeting set up with Gang Orca for tomorrow," replied the density shifter, "with any luck it should go at least somewhat favorably."

"I guess I should've expected you two to be on top of it," groaned Kaminari.

"Well it makes sense to a fair degree given that we're directly involved with hero work," said Shoji, "If anything happened."

"Then it would be the pros who have to take responsibility for it," Aizawa said as everyone wondered how long he'd been standing by the door. "Only the best pros will take on rookies such as yourselves knowing the risks involved. Speaking of which, Tokoyami, you've actually gotten an offer from Hawks in Kyushu."

"No way," said Sero, "that guy's the number three hero!" Indeed if what Clay heard was true about the winged hero, he knew his stuff.

"I humbly accept his offer," said Tokoyami with a nod of his bird head.

"Just let me know when you plan to head there so I can sign off on your absences," said Aizawa. "Also, Kirishima. Amajiki of the big three wants to discuss a few things with you. Uraraka and Asui, Nejire Hado wants to talk to you two. Track them down tomorrow or whenever you have time. That's all for now." The 1A teacher turned and exited the room then as a new level of excitement began to permeate the atmosphere.

"What in the world would Amajiki want with me?" Questioned Kirishima.

"It might have to do with the work studies if you consider the timing of it all," said Tsuyu.

"No way that'd be too good to be true, right," said Uraraka as her head shot up.

"And we gotta wait 'til, nope I can't wait," said Kirishima as he stood up straight, "I'm heading over to the third year dorms right now!"

"Same here, let's go Ochako," said Tsuyu as the two of them got up and almost rushed out the door.

"And now I'm jealous of even more of our classmates," groaned Kaminari.

"Ah who cares about that work study stuff anyway," Mineta chimed in, "first years like us will probably get stuck with busy work like running errands and cleaning and doing the paperwork all day."

"You mean like what happened at your internship," quipped Kaminari.

"Don't remind me of my disgraceful past!" exclaimed Mineta.

"Which part?" Questioned Slade, "there's a lot to choose from in that bundle." If the rest of the class wasn't laughing before they certainly were now.

The Next Day: Gang Orca's Hero Office

Now Clay and Slade weren't really nervous when they went to the interview with Gang Orca's agency, but even they had to admit that helping stop a robbery definitely upped their chances as the two of them stood in the large main office of the whale hero. "I must admit I have little reason not to contract you both with my agency right now given your record of accomplishments," said Gang Orca, "but I feel I should at least ask one important question: Why is it the two of you want to be heroes in the first place?" It was a question the duo had expected as it had been asked of them many times before at U.A., and each time the answer seemed a little different. But they did have an answer.

"My two best friends are fighting to become heroes," said Slade, "for a long while that was more than enough of a reason for me to keep pushing through, so I could stand beside them in their struggles to make this world better. But on a more personal level, I want to be a hero because it affords me the chance to solve problems facing us that I wouldn't have the authority to do so otherwise. I want to be a hero because there are some things that only heroes can do." Gang Orca seemed to accept this answer as he turned his attention to Clay.

"Well my reasoning isn't as fantastic as all that," said the cloud user, "I want to be a hero so that I can fight back against those who dwell in the dark and, now that All Might's retired, help prevent the reemergence of organized crime by routing out those in the criminal underworld."

"Good enough for now at least," said Gang Orca as he stamped both of their contracts with a seal of approval, "and funny you should mention organized crime. We happen to be doing a low key investigation of an organization known as the Shie Hassaikai."

"The former Yakuza," said Clay with a quirk of his eyebrow. From what he remembered, the breaking up of most forms of organized crime left their thugs basically wandering around aimlessly taking what villainous work they could get. Though given that the authorities knew who they were and monitored their movements, there was very little they should've been able to actually get away with.

"The very same," said Gang Orca as he pulled out a file which had a picture of a man wearing a red plague mask that resembled a bird's beak. "The group's head and second in command, Kai Chisaki, has been acting rather off lately. He's been actively gathering the crime group back together again and word has it he's even made contact with the League of Villains, a group I'm certain the two of you are more than familiar with."

"We've had more than a few run-ins with those pricks," said Slade as he clenched his fist a little. "Do you want us to help identify some of them?"

"Not quite," said Gang Orca as he held up another file, "We'll be patrolling an area were some of his subordinates have been seen recently. Now I know the two of you are capable of holding your own when push comes to shove, but this is mainly a recon mission so do your best to avoid confrontation."

"What should we do if we notice something off the patrol route that looks like it's worth investigating?" Questioned Clay as he looked at the map in the files.

"Contact me if you can and I'll decide whether or not it's worth looking into," replied the whale hero, "that said, should either of you find yourselves in a situation where you can't reach me, you'll have to use your own judgement on how to proceed. Do the two of you think you can handle something like that?"

"Yes sir!" said the U.A. students excitedly as they did their own little salutes.

"That's what I like to hear," said Gang Orca with what passed for a smile on his whale face, "so starting today, is your first work study assignment with my agency."

**And so the investigation of Overhaul and his gang begins as our heroes set out on their first work study mission! And a hello to everyone as we start off a new month with the second chapter continuing this story. As always feel free to leave a comment or review about what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as our heroes in training encounter some of the Eight Precepts of death. 'Til then.**


	3. The Towering Expendable

**The Towering Expendable **

**Welcome everyone to the third chapter of volume 2! No guest review questions to answer this week it seems so let's dive right into the story!**

Downtown: Near Former Yakuza Territory

It wasn't often Clay's nerves got the better of him these days. Between escaping a burning oil tanker, multiple villain encounters and seeing the granddaddy of all bad guys, All for One, in the flesh he was really chipping down the number of things which actually scared him. But even he had to admit that it was a little nerve-wracking going on an actual patrol near an area with known or at least suspected criminal activity. Thankfully his mask hid most of his face so no one would be able to tell right away that he was the slightest bit nervous unless they were observant enough to notice his occasional fidgeting with his costume.

Slade wasn't doing much better as Clay noticed him clenching and unclenching his fists every now and then, one of the telltale signs he'd come to recognize as his big friend actually being antsy. The only person to not seem overly nervous was the aptly named Sergeant Seal, who wore the same outfit as the rest of Gang Orca's men but had to have it accommodated to fit his half sea lion head. "I know investigating is a bit new to the both of you, but don't get too nervous," said Seal with his voice slightly distorted by the mask, "just relax and keep an eye out for anything unusual. After all, the main investigation is being handled by Gang Orca himself."

"I get that we're just looking around the perimeter a block away from the actual investigation," said Clay, "But I don't think you realize just how bad our luck has been since our hero training started."

"It's been villain attack after villain attack and that's not counting the insane tests we've been through up to this point," said Slade, "One of the few upsides has been that random people wave at us from time to time because they recognize us from the sports festival." As if on cue, a few people from across the street did just that while also letting out a few cheers. "What'd I tell you?"

"And given that the both of you were able to pull through each time just adds to the fact that you shouldn't feel so nervous about patrolling," said Seal as the trio turned a corner and walked down a more deserted side street, "what you need to do now is be taking note of things like possible out of place noises, behaviors and sights. Ask yourself: Does this seem out of place or, is that supposed to be here, or why is that guy ducking down an alley?"

"You mean that guy?" Questioned Slade as he pointed out an individual in a green hoodie who was indeed performing that very action.

"You guessed it," said Seal as his voice took on a more business-like tone. His movements became a bit more tense as conversation dropped to a minimum. The group slowly crept forward and peered into the alley to get a look at what was occurring. Their target seemed to be a bit fidgety as his head darted from side to side, looking around the alley until a voice startled him. In the next moment, a short figure wearing a black outfit with a white bird mask came treading into view as the sidekick and two work studies strained their ears to listen to what was being said.

"You're back earlier than expected this week," said the smaller figure, "I told you not to waste the merchandise so quickly."

"I ran into a sidekick, what was I supposed to do," said the man in the green hoodie, "I had to use them or I woulda been caught."

"You assured the boss you wouldn't draw any unwanted attention," said the smaller figure, "tell me you at least hid the fact that you used the drug."

"I did, I swear," said the hooded man, "for all they know I just went ballistic with my quirk. I wouldn't be that careless with something so important."

"And yet you allowed yourself to be followed," said the masked midget as his gaze turned towards the entrance of the alley where the trio was currently standing. "Rikiya, if you wouldn't mind taking out the garbage." The wall in front of him burst forth then as a massive hand with an armored glove reached out and yanked the frightened criminal in the green hoodie through the wall.

"Dammit, they're getting away," said Seal as he, Clay and Slade all rushed forward down the alley towards their target. The small man in the black cloak seemed to be in no hurry as a massive shadow emerged from the hole in the wall. Clay was quick to send out a cloud twice the size of a marble that sped towards the two unknown villains. The one blocking their way wasn't fast enough to stop the high speed projectile as it impacted on the back of the midget's head, causing him to fall over unconscious.

This victory, though small, enraged their new enemy as he threw a massive punch towards the three of them. Slade increased to max density to block the blow while Clay flew over his head using his cloud greaves and gauntlets, leaving Seal to leap up and attempt a punch of his own against the behemoth. But the large man was surprisingly quick for his size as he backed up and caught Seal's arm before throwing him against the wall. His next blow was stopped, however, as several crescent blade clouds cut at the skin of his joints. The muscular giant grew annoyed as he turned his head towards Clay, who could now see he was wearing a bird mask with black coloration that resembled a crow's head.

As he cocked back his fist for another blow, Slade came jumping up from behind him, grabbing his head while also increasing his density. "Try some aikido prick!" exclaimed the U.A. student as he swung his quickly increasing weight to the side, knocking their opponent off-balance and causing him to fall to the ground with an impact that cracked the concrete beneath him. Seal was also back on his feet as he came in with a flying ax kick on the giant's black, tank-topped stomach.

"Annoying little flies," murmured the bird-masked man as he shot back up, forcing Seal off of him before aiming a kick at Slade, who was sent skidding back despite raising his density in time. Clay was next as he dropped down on the giant's head, covering it with a mass of thickened clouds. The villain stumbled around as he tried to free his head, each success meeting only with the clouds reforming back on his head as the wielder held on for dear life.

"Slade, under over!" Called out Clay as he produced a rope from the cloud sack on his opponent's head.

"I love this one!" Exclaimed Slade as he grabbed onto the rope and swung between their foe's legs while upping his density. Clay jumped off of the villain as the force of Slade's high density swing yanked his head downwards into the pavement before flipping his body forward onto his back.

"The bigger they are and all that," said Seal as he pulled out and fired his own personal cement guns at the villain's feet and legs. The quickly hardening residue formed a layer of stone over his limbs as he appeared to struggle at grasping the situation. Or so they all thought until something strange happened. A loud inhaling noise sounded from the giant as some kind of essence seemed to be pulled from Slade and Seal, both of whom collapsed to their knees.

"Guys, what's wrong?" Asked Clay as he tried to help up his friend.

"They're vitality now belongs to me," said the villain before shattering the restraining cement on his feet, causing debris to rain down on them and make Clay lose his concentration on the cloud that was holding his head. "And it has made me ever stronger." His point was clear as his already bulging muscles expanded even more and his height seemed to increase by more than a foot as he flexed his large, combat-gloved hands. "You're creative teamwork isn't half bad, but what will you do now that you're fighting more or less alone?"

It was true, both Seal and Slade were having trouble standing right now, while Clay's own normal attacks were ineffective against a thick-skinned opponent. Ordinarily he'd have Slade buy him a little time so he could charge up a higher powered version of grasping thunder, but he couldn't do that and protect his friends at the same time. There were only a few options he could see now, and Clay chose the one that would benefit at least a little as he produced a massive cloud which filled up the alley and charged toward the villain. The man named Rikiya seemed unconcerned as he cocked his fist back and threw a full power swing which met some resistance, but not enough to stop him as he felt his hand break through and make contact with the ground.

But the sound of splintering bone and squished flesh did not reach his ears. Looking around, the Yakuza member noted that his prey was nowhere to be seen. Even more infuriating, neither was the body of the bird-masked midget.

Near Gang Orca's Hero Agency

The supposedly dissipated cloud drifted to the ground until it dissolved completely, revealing a less exhausted Slade and Seal while Clay himself was busy catching his breath. "Who was that guy?" Asked the density shifter as he experimentally flexed his hand. It seemed their strength was slowly returning, thankfully, but it still left the question of how it had been drained in the first place.

"Rikiya Katsukame," replied Seal, "a member of the Shie Hassaikai's eight expendables. They work for Kai Chisaki, or to be more precise the group is pretty much devoted to him. I wish I knew why he was hanging around that particular area in the first place though."

"Maybe this will shed a little light on things," said Clay as he pointed to an empty black cloak and mask, "I managed to grab onto the short guy with my clouds, but there doesn't seem to be a physical body in there. The guy must've escaped with his quirk somehow."

"But we're not empty-handed," noted Slade as he rummaged around in the cloak and pulled out what appeared to be some kind of drug injector, "I think Gang Orca will definitely wanna take a look at this."

Analysis Lab in Gang Orca's Hero office: A Short Time Later

"I must say I'm actually a bit impressed," said the Pro as he read through the report, "you encountered one of the Shie Hassaikai and still managed to grab some evidence in the middle of escaping. Though in hindsight perhaps I should've tagged along with the two of you on your first patrol to make sure things went smoothly."

"Well hindsight is twenty twenty anyway," said Clay, "none of us could've predicted what was going to happen and the fact that we escaped at all is still amazing to me honestly. Speaking of amazing, did we learn anything about that Rikiya guy's quirk?"

"From what you told me he appears to absorb vitality," mused Gang Orca, "but he either needs to make physical contact first or he can only absorb the vitality of so many people at once. It would explain why you were unaffected Mr. Cero."

"And the drugs we recovered," questioned Slade, "Have your guys been able to determine what sort of effects they're supposed to have on someone?"

"By the looks of the preliminary analysis," replied Gang Orca as he flipped to the next page of the report, "the drugs appear to be capable of enhancing one's quirk to incredible levels and, in theory, even allow the surpassing of certain limitations one would normally have in the use of their quirk."

"So that's the Shie Hassaikai's game," said Clay as he adopted a thinking pose, "sell drugs to petty criminals with small quirks to beef up them up and rake in some dough while also using said drugs to strengthen their own, more powerful quirks to spread their influence throughout the city once again."

"A possible scenario to be sure," said Gang Orca, "though with this small amount of information it's too soon to be making broad assumptions just yet. The next thing we need to know is if Kai Chisaki is connected to any of this or if his subordinates are acting of their own accord. We also need to determine the source of these new drugs as it's still possible the Shie Hassaikai are merely the middlemen for another organization, especially given the recent reports that they might be teaming up with the League of Villains."

"So what should our next step be?" Asked Slade, "Should we head back out on the street?"

"You two have done plenty of work for today," said Gang Orca, "I need to make a few calls to some other agencies who are also doing an investigation into Kai Chisaki and his group. So for now just head home and come in at the next appointed time. We should have something for the both of you by then."

"Yes sir," they both replied politely before turning and heading out the door. As soon as they walked out the door, though, their minds started working in overdrive. It made the walk out of the agency relatively quiet as the both of them were lost in thought. Their stroll down the street and to the train station was also fairly quiet, until Slade saw his friend eyeing one of the stops on the train's schedule.

"You aren't really thinking of doing what I think you are, are you?" Questioned Slade.

"We have a potential source that the other hero agencies don't," said Clay, "And if the possibility exists that the Yakuza might be trying to rise from the ashes, then it would make sense that he'd at least hear about it to some extent."

"Yes, but if anyone we know catches us going in there again we could get expelled from school," said Slade, "It's already difficult with Momo and Jirou knowing about it."

"Those two discovering us was a complete accident," assured Clay, "and besides, can they really get mad at us if we bring in solid evidence on a group like the Shie Hassaikai?" The obvious answer was yes, the teachers at U.A. could still get mad about them obtaining information this way. But at the same time, the possibility of gaining valuable intel that would help the hero community seemed like it would be worth at least a little risk and the chances of them getting into a potential confrontation with an unknown enemy were also lower. The density shifter turned the idea over in his head every which way before finally sighing.

"Let's just get in and out this time," he said, "As much as I like pool, betting our lives on it takes some of the fun out of it."

"Glad we're in agreement," said Clay as the two of them stepped onto the train.

A Short Train Ride Later: The Eight Ball Knuckles

"I gotta admit," said the massive ex-villain as he adjusted his pool cue, "I didn't expect to be seeing either of you again after last time, or at least not this year anyway." He then proceeded to break the current formation of pool balls and came up with stripes as one fell in a side pocket. "But at least you showed up before opening this time."

"We figured after the mishap that was our first visit it'd be better if we didn't show up when this place was full of possible villains," said Clay, "I honestly wasn't even sure you'd let us in despite that."

"Ditto," said Slade as he got his turn and managed to sink one of the solid pool balls with a skillful push of his cue. The two of them had switched over to their street clothes and kept the hoods up on their jackets in order to look as seedy as possible on the way over to the now familiar villain's bar.

"Well truth be told It's been forever since I've had a good opponent for this game," replied Eight Ball, "A bunch of the punks that come in these days don't have the patience or skill to play but love to talk it up with their own excuses. Sore losers, the lot of them."

"In all honesty a lot of villains are sore losers," Clay pointed out, "So it shouldn't really be a surprise."

"It's not," admitted Eight Ball, "but there seemed to be more respect for good sport when I first opened this place. Anyway, what can I do for the both of you this time?"

"Shie Hassaikai," said the cloud wielder, "we encountered one of them earlier today who was selling some kind of quirk enhancement drug, as well as a huge guy wearing a bird mask."

"Katsukame," mused Eight Ball as he actually missed his next shot, "I remember tangling with him once over a territory dispute. Packs quite a punch but the real kicker is when his quirk activates and steals the vitality of anyone he makes physical contact with."

"So that is how it works," commented Slade as he managed to knock another solid ball close to a side pocket.

"As for the drugs, its Shie Hassaikai alright," continued Eight Ball, "but they've got something else they tried selling me recently too. Specialized bullets of some sort. Not sure what's in 'em, but they claim it'll put down the quirk of anyone I've got a beef with."

"Do you happen to have any with you right now?" Questioned Clay.

"Guns don't really do me any good," replied Eight Ball as he managed to sink another stripe ball in a side pocket, "my hands are too big for most conventional firearms and I prefer punching out my problems with fisticuffs anyway. But there is one thing I've realized after doing a little figuring."

"And that would be," said Slade as he sank one of his own colored pool balls in a far end pocket.

"Only a few of the patrons coming in here have mentioned the bullets or the drugs," explained Eight Ball, "which tells me his supply ain't huge right now. If that's the case, he may only have one or two sources for the both of them right now. If you can find that, you might be able to shut down the whole operation before it even takes off."

"Sounds like a fairly straightforward plan," said Slade as he observed Eight Ball scoring another point.

"On paper," said the ex-villain, "but they don't call these guys the Shie Hassaikai, The Eight Precepts of Death, for nothing. If you kids are really dead set on going after them, you'd best be ready for just that, a fight to the death." As if to stress how dangerous it really was, the bar owner sank the eight ball and ended the current game. The two students left the bar with just as many questions as answers that day, and a feeling of foreboding as their first day of work studies came to an end.

**The two heroes in training make even greater strides to becoming pros, but in so doing march ever forward to an uncertain fate. Hello again everyone I hope you enjoyed this latest chapter as the story begins to pick up a little. This still being the early stages of the arc means that the best action is yet to come, so in the meantime feel free to leave a comment or review about what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as a number of fears are confirmed for our heroes. 'Til then.**


	4. Meetings According to Nighteye

**Meetings According to Nighteye**

**Hello all and Happy Thanksgiving! First, a quick apology on getting this chapter out late but with the holidays comes a lot of get-to-togethers to attend. But it's here now and seeing as there appear to be no guest reviews this time around we can all jump right into the story! enjoy.**

U.A. Heights Alliance: Night Time

It had been a few days since the beginning of Clay and Slade's work study with Gang Orca and so far the pair had only been called in one other time where they managed to help catch a small group of thugs with the same quirk enhancement drug they'd gotten off of the bird-masked midget. They'd come to learn his name was apparently Mimic and his quirk, mimicry, was the reason his costume was empty when they'd examined it. What was more alarming, however, was something the both of them had heard from Midoriya. The leader of the Shie Hassaikai, Kai Chisaki, had a daughter he'd run into while out on patrol with Mirio.

From what he'd been told, the little blue-haired girl with a horn on her head was trembling and had bandages wrapped around her arms. The sight of it had been bothering Izuku for days which made Clay and Slade a lot less willing to tell him what they'd both come to conclude: The girl was the source of either the anti-quirk bullet, the quirk enhancement drug, or both. In fact, the reason Clay was currently having trouble concentrating on the keyboard was because he was trying to think of whether or not he should actually tell Midoriya this fact. "Hey Clay, are you okay in there?"

"Huh," said the cloud user as he stopped playing and looked up.

"You were starting to rush your notes quite a bit," said Jirou from her position on the bench next to him, "You usually only do that when something's bothering you?"

"I guess it would be obvious when one lets their emotions flow into their music," said Clay as he rubbed his head for a moment, "but how do you know that rushing notes is my way of saying something's wrong? Maybe I'm really excited and can't contain myself."

"You tend to play a bit more upbeat when you're excited," countered Jirou, "and by that I mean you put more emphasis on certain notes while also having a better flow. But your playing starts to get choppy and slowly picks up speed when you're focused on something else."

"You really did grow up with music your whole life if you can spot that," said Clay, mildly impressed, "though it does make me wonder how closely you're paying attention to me to notice such a minute detail."

"Oh I'm not paying that close of attention," said Jirou as she looked away with a slight blush while her earphone jacks pressed together in the same manner as a person's fingers, "I just happened to notice because, ya know, my quirk is good with hearing things and I've got a musical ear and-."

"Relax I'm just teasing," said Clay, "but you are right I've got a couple things on my mind from the work studies."

"You know you can tell me stuff right," said Jirou, "after all I kinda know at least one of your current dirty secrets already."

"What would you say if I said I went back to that shady little villain's bar," asked Clay.

"Well given that this is just hypothetical, I'd say you're still crazy for going back to a place that we only got out of because Slade's a good pool player," replied Jirou. She would've laughed a little too until she noticed that Clay was being serious. "You didn't-?" Her door burst open then as Momo came dragging Slade in behind her.

"Jirou, I think we need to have a talk with these too," said Momo with a stern look on her face.

"You led with the bar too didn't you," Clay asked as his friend simply nodded.

"You both went back to that place," whispered Jirou fiercely, remembering at the last second to keep her voice down as she closed and locked her door.

"Well as I was saying before Momo drug me all the way here," explained Slade, "we went there before business hours so it was just Eight Ball and some employees."

"But you still went back to a bar where villains are known to hang out," said Momo, "After what happened last time how could you even think it was a good idea risking expulsion for a second time! What possible reason could you have for that?!"

"To learn where a type of quirk enhancement drugs are being made," said Clay, "that was the original intent. We wound up learning much more than that."

"Like what?" Questioned Jirou with her arms crossed.

"The Yakuza group known as the Shie Hassaikai are also producing anti-quirk bullets," said Slade, "and now we believe their source for all of it, is a little girl." This gave their two classmates pause as the both of them digested this information.

"Thanks to Eight Ball we know almost for a fact that they're the ones behind it all," Clay explained further, "but it was Midoriya who discovered the little girl. The decision we've been wrestling with this whole time, is whether or not we should tell him our conclusions about her." Neither one of the girls spoke as Momo covered her mouth in shock while Jirou clenched one of her fists, realizing what it was they were implying.

"Someone is using a little girl, to make drugs and specialized bullets," repeated Momo, "Why would someone do such a thing?"

"The same reason villains always do something like that," said Slade, "because they believe it'll give them power. What's more, the League of Villains may be working with the Shie Hassaikai."

"Bastards," said Jirou, "even with their boss out of commission they still want to start trouble."

"But if they're working together, wouldn't that make the both of you targets?" Momo pointed out. "You were supposed to be on a list of people the league wanted killed on sight Clay."

"There's no solid evidence to link the two yet," said Clay, "but even if there wasn't, I won't be backing down from this case."

"But if the League is working with this Yakuza group then you two might be targeted for helping with the investigation," said Jirou, "what if they come after you directly?"

"It would be no different than if we were actual pros," said Slade with his arms crossed, "maybe you've forgotten but we are training to be heroes and, despite everything the teachers have done to insure our safety there still remains one undeniable fact. If we're serious about becoming heroes then we have to be willing to risk our lives at some point." Jirou and Momo both wanted to argue this point but instead they sighed upon realizing the two of them were right. The 1A students had already risked their lives multiple times due to the circumstances, but in truth, that was the life all of them were eventually going to lead if they managed to graduate.

"But this is all beside the point," said Clay, "like I said earlier, the real thing that's bothering me and Slade is whether or not we should tell Izuku about the girl. He's already pretty beat up about letting her go in the first place."

"But, he still has a chance to save her, right?" Asked Momo, somewhat quietly at first.

"If what we suspect is true then the girl is being held captive for her quirk," said Slade with a hand to his chin, "which means yes, there is a chance to save her."

"Then tell him that much at least," said Jirou, "You guys are friends after all. I don't know Midoriya very well, but I know you two have always been there to help him out when you could. And I know you both meant well going back to that place even if it could've gotten you in trouble. Just, please be careful when you do finally move in to save that girl." Clay and Slade nodded at their friend's request as Momo clapped her hands together.

"Well then, we still have some studying and some music playing to get too," Momo said happily, "why don't we pick up where we left off and have a jam session." A cheer was her answer as the four friends spent the rest of the time alternating between different instruments, happy that they were able to come to an understanding.

Nighteye's Agency: The Next Day

The U.A. students received a call to their work studies that morning and were currently on the train to the requested location. What was rather odd this time around, however, was the presence of a few more of their classmates. Midoriya, Kirishima, Uraraka and Tsuyu were all aboard and heading to the same station. It made for a much more pleasant trip to their destination but it struck everyone as strange, especially when they exited the train and all headed in the same direction.

No one commented much on the strangeness of the route at first. But as the group continued to walk with none of the students breaking off or deviating from the path being taken, Slade finally put two and two together and decided to speak up about it. "So we're all going to the same place then aren't we?" He said.

"Now there's no proof of that just yet," said Kirishima, "I mean sure we got on the same train, went to the same stop and have been walking basically the same route the whole way-." The red-haired teen trailed off as he realized what he was saying.

"I've actually been this way before," said Clay, "I came up here with Midoriya and Mirio for the work study interview with Sir Nighteye. This would be where his agency is located."

"But why would we all be meeting at the same agency," asked Uraraka.

"Maybe they know," said Tsuyu as she pointed at said agency building were U.A.'s big three were currently gathered.

"No way," said Midoriya as their group followed them inside where they were greeted by a rather amazing, and unnerving sight, "what's going on?" The agency lobby was currently filled to the brim with pro heroes, both major and minor, all standing around chatting. Some of them were quite well-known to the students there, including a certain night-walking teacher.

"So this is what you were called in at the last minute for," said Clay as he approached Aizawa, who was currently talking with Gran Torino and Bubble Girl.

"That's right," said his Uncle, "and I imagine like me you've got a pretty rough idea as to why we're all here at the moment."

"You could say that," replied Slade as another hero came walking up to them. She was a woman with short blond hair wearing a type of head band with a bony mask that covered her right eye and was also decorated with small dragon wings that seemed to pop out of the back of her head. She wore a type of red, Japanese style dress with a dragon design running along the edges. This was the dragon hero Ryukyu.

"I believe you girls should also recall me mentioning that you'd be helping out in a new case," said the dragon woman. Realization seemed to cross both Tsuyu and Uraraka's faces as they realized what she was talking about. The woman then turned to a familiar man in a white business suit. "Everyone's here and accounted for Nighteye, we're ready to begin."

"First off," said All Might's former sidekick as he walked to the center of the room, "I'd like to thank all of you for the information you've provided thus far. With it we've been able to break quite a bit of ground on our investigation. You've all been invited here today so that we can compare the information we have on the Yakuza group, Shie Hassaikai, and what they might be planning." The tension in the room rose a bit for many people, save for Kirishima who had to be brought up to speed on who they were talking about.

Shortly after Nighteye's declaration, the large group of pros and students moved into the meeting room which had a rather large table and a projector screen at the far end. Nighteye himself sat at the head of the table as Bubble Girl began the explanation as to what led to the current investigation. "Now starting from the beginning," she said while reading off of some notes from a clipboard, "a group known as the Reservoir Dogs had a car accident involving the Shie Hassaikai. But a number of details didn't really add up, so Centipeder here began tailing them."

It was at this point that a man wearing what resembled a butler's uniform with a centipede head took over the explanation, with a surprisingly high-pitched voice. "I started following a number of leads and my investigation has found that over the past year, Shie Hassaikai has been increasing its contact with other organizations, including groups with less than reputable business dealings. Their aim seems to be expansion of their organization and increasing its commerce. Something else worthy of note, they made contact with a member of the League of Villains: Jin Bubaigawara, better known as the villain Twice. At this point they became wary of being tailed which made it too difficult for me to follow them, but with help from the police we managed to determine that some kind of altercation had taken place between the groups."

As he was speaking, the projector was switching between slides with the latest being the sight of a building with a hole that had apparently been blasted open. "It was also at about that point that they decided to reach out to me and Tsukauchi given our familiarity with the League of Villains. He's currently following up with eyewitnesses which is why he ain't here at the moment," said Gran Torino before directing his next comment towards Izuku, "and sorry to say kid but I got a feeling that things are about to turn ugly."

"I don't care I still want to help," said Midoriya before turning to Mirio to explain how he knew Gran Torino.

"Now then," said Bubble Girl, "After this was brought to our attention we posted a notice on the HN-."

"I don't think we need to mention that part," Centipeder pointed out, causing Bubble Girl to stutter a bit as she looked through her notes for the next important point.

"What exactly is the HN," asked Uraraka for both her and Tsuyu.

"Oh that, it's short for Hero Network," explained Nejire, "An online service used only by Pro heroes that lets them see what the other heroes are up too, and it can be used to ask for help from people whose quirks might come in handy."

"Someone mind explaining to me why a bunch of high school kids are at this meeting," said a dark-skinned hero with a yellow scarf and domino mask named Rock Lock, "I don't care that they're U.A. kids, we'll never get to the actual plan if we have to stop and explain everything."

"Says the guy who is literally stopping this whole thing for an explanation which was given at the beginning of the meeting," Clay pointed out with a hint of annoyance, "we're 'all' here because we have something to contribute to this case."

"He's right!" Said a large man round man in a yellow suit that covered even his head as he indicated Kirishima and Amajiki, "Both of my work studies here have important information on this case! Oh and for the newer heroes around here I'm Fat Gum!"

"And he is here due to his history of stopping drug dealers," explained Nighteye, "We suspect one of the sources of Shie Hassaikai's income is illegal drug sales."

"And Kirishima here proved he could too when he stopped a bullet meant for Amajiki," said Fat Gum, "and in that bullet was a particular drug that has the nasty effect of destroying quirks." This got the rest of the Pro's attention as Mirio stood up from his seat in worry.

"But you're okay now right Tamaki," said a worried Mirio. The quiet member of the big three morphed his arm into something resembling a lamb's foot, showing that his quirk was indeed still active.

"Well the good news is this stuff doesn't destroy quirks permanently," said Rock Lock.

"I believe Eraser Head can explain the reason behind that," said Nighteye as he gave the floor to Aizawa.

"The drug seems to function differently from my own quirk," explained the Erasure Hero as he pointed to his eyes, "what I do doesn't actually attack the quirk. You see what we know as a quirk is an addition to an otherwise ordinary human body known as quirk genes. What I do is shield those genes and block their expression temporarily."

"But after Tamaki was shot the doctors at the hospital discovered that his quirk genes were actually damaged. Fortunately they've healed and his quirk is back to normal now," said Fat Gum. "We've also come to learn that only his quirk was attacked while the rest of his body was fine. The guy who did the shooting won't say a word but one of the bullets he shot bounced off of Kirishima's hardening quirk and thanks to that we have a viable sample."

"Seriously, I did that," said a confused Kirishima as Uraraka and Tsuyu congratulated him on a job well done.

"And upon analysis of it we found something that made me absolutely sick," said Fat Gum, "The bullet contained human blood as well as cells." Slade didn't miss the way Mirio and Izuku tensed up at hearing this information. The other U.A. students were also relatively unnerved hearing it. 'Well that pretty much confirms what we feared,' Clay and Slade thought.

"So it comes from a person then," said Ryukyu, "a quirk capable of destroying other quirks."

"But what connects all of this to Hassaikai?" Questioned a Pro in a type of skull mask.

"The man who had the anti-quirk bullet also had a quirk-enhancing drug," explained Fat Gum, "the distribution chains are complex for that kind of thing but we do know that one of the companies responsible for moving it has interacted with Hassaikai."

"Is that all we have to go on?" Asked the Skull-masked Pro.

"We also found an inferior drug was used recently in a fight between two individuals with gigantification quirks," said Ryukyu.

"The drug was distributed by the same intermediary companies used by Hassaikai," said Nighteye, "not to mention a number of other gang-related clashes recently which could be connected to the Shie Hassaikai if you try hard enough."

"The key word there is 'try' almost like you're 'trying' to make them look guilty," said the skull-masked pro, "do we really not have anything more concrete?"

"How about this," said Clay as he and Slade held up a couple of photos Gang Orca had given them, "The big guy in this photo is called Rikiya Katsukame, a member of the Eight Expendables who work under the Shie Hassaikai."

"And the midget in this photo is a rather high class member known as Mimic," Slade continued, "Clay and I had a run-in with the both of them during one of our patrols with Gang Orca's sidekick Seal. We got away obviously while also nabbing the same quirk enhancement drug used by the gang member Kirishima took down."

"And what's more," said Nighteye as he switched to a slide of the Hassaikai leader, "we managed to uncover some new information about their young head Kai Chisaki, quirk: overhaul. He possesses the power to disassemble and reassemble matter, much like the bullet that can tear apart quirks. It seems he has a daughter named Eri who has no records or details surrounding her birth. When Midoriya and Mirio encountered her they noted bandages wrapped around both her arms and legs."

"That man would really do something so horrific to his own daughter," said Ryukyu with a tone of horror in her voice.

"Unfortunately in a world of super humans, if you can dream it up then you can probably do it," said Gran Torino.

"What exactly do you mean by that?" Questioned Kirishima.

"And once again why are high school kids here," said Rock Lock, "I-."

"Apparently think we can't put two and two together," said an annoyed Slade, "do you really think we can't grasp that a man is extracting and selling bullets from his own daughter's body on the black market?!" The other U.A. student's eyes widened in realization at the horror of what he'd just said.

"To be perfectly clear we're not certain they're in the process of fully marketing them yet," said Nighteye, "it's very likely they're still testing at this point and giving out samples to other groups to rally more people to his cause. While we don't have anything concrete yet it is clear Shie Hassaikai is gathering funds and allies from across the nation and should this drug be perfected to the point of fully annihilating someone's quirk, the devastation will be horrendous."

"So what are we waiting for," said Fat Gum with a clenched fists, "let's get out there and take 'em down!"

"We could've avoided a lot of trouble if these two amateurs had just-," Rock Lock started to say before a fist slamming on the table stopped him.

"DON'T PUT THIS ON THEM!" Clay yelled, "All you've done this entire meeting is slow things down by complaining about us being here and now you apparently think the two of them would've stood a chance against the head of a Yakuza group who could've easily had half a dozen guards shadowing him! And here I thought you were a pro."

"What'd you just say punk?!" Said Rock Lock as he moved to stand up.

"Enough," said Nighteye, "Mr. Cero is right in this case, the blame lies with me and not with them. Both acted in their own way to save the girl with Mirio deciding that it was best to wait for a better opportunity to save her which is precisely what we've come here to discuss." Izuku and Mirio shot to their feet, determination and frustration clear in their movements.

"We'll get her back next time," said Mirio with a clenched fist.

"We'll definitely save her!" declared Midoriya.

"Great that you're talking big and all," said Rock Lock, "but if the implications are all true, that girl is at the center of Hassaikai's whole drug operation and given that she was seen by a couple of heroes there's no way he's gonna keep her at home. If we go in looking for her and Chisaki catches on we can kiss any chance we have of finding the girl good bye."

"Do you have a plan for that Nighteye," asked Ryukyu.

"It's a conundrum, no doubt," he said as a map of Japan appeared on the projector with several marked locations, "the success of our initial strike is crucial, which is why we've compiled a list of groups connected to Hassaikai as well as properties owned by the organization. This will serve as our starting point. What I would like is for each of you to investigate the locations shown here." 'Well that explains why there's pros of all ranks here,' thought Clay as he looked around, 'each one of these heroes patrols the area around the location and would know it better than anyone else.'

"I'm surprised someone who worked with All Might for so long is such a cautious planner," said Fat Gum, "Why can't we just go take 'em down! Every minute we waste is another minute that girl is having to suffer!"

"We cannot do this like All Might would," said Nighteye, "we must be meticulous and find the correct moment to strike."

"Hate to say it but he's right," said Gran Torino, "If we rush in too soon and fail to rescue her it'll be nothing but fuel to the fire, like how capturing Stain only seemed to encourage villains. It wouldn't surprise me if it wound up making quirk destroying weapons more popular."

"You're overthinking this!" Said Fat Gum, "We won't get anything done if we just keep sitting here talking about it."

"There is one question I happen to have," said Aizawa with a raise of his hand, "I'm not familiar with the specifics of your quirk so forgive me if I get something wrong. But from what I hear your quirk foresight gives you the ability to see into someone's future, so why not simply use it on us to determine what'll happen?"

"I'm afraid it's not as simple as that," said Knighteye somewhat gloomily, "my foresight is more limited than you think. I have to wait twenty four hours between each activation before I can use it again, which means I could only look at one of you a day. In addition, what I'm seeing is played in my mind as more of a flashback like a filmstrip detailing a person's life. But it's a very tight viewing and makes it difficult for me to determine context."

"It would still be a fair amount of information," Aizawa pointed out, "and you haven't answered the part about why you specifically 'can't' do it."

"Let me pose a question then," said Nighteye as he adjusted his glasses, "what if I saw very imminent death in your near future? Or even worse, a cruel and merciless end? I believe my quirk should only be employed after we've determined the highest likelihood of success so that it can help insure our victory. It's not something that should be relied upon when there are still this many uncertainties."

"Wait a minute," said Rock Lock, "possible death is still information and if we know what's coming we can figure out how not to get killed."

"You misunderstand," said Nighteye, "It's very likely what I see is an unavoidable fate."

"That's the excuse you're going with!" exclaimed Rock Lock as he stood up, "Just use it on me then and I'll prove to you right now I can beat-huh?!" The pro hero was interrupted midsentence by a grey bullet shooting across the room and stopping just next to his head.

"Death one, Loud Lock zero," said Clay as the bullet-shaped cloud reverted back to its more vaporous state and returned to its wielder, circling around his hand until it became a small skull and crossbones. "The future is an ever-changing thing. Consider for a moment that the event he sees might actually be because he told you about impending death in the first place? Or better yet, consider that he didn't see death in your future at all and then you let your guard down and die anyway because you assumed you were golden."

"Geez alright," said Rock Lock as he sat back down. Truth be told neither Clay nor Slade were certain of the reason for Nighteye not using his quirk, but they figured it was complicated.

"Clay, I've told you there's a time and a place to employ intimidation," said Aizawa, "Save it for the villains."

"Yeah I got carried away," said Clay, "Slade here just gave me a lecture about the dynamics of shaping the future yesterday so it kind of slipped out."

"Whatever the case we need to remember there's a child in trouble," said Ryukyu with a sigh, "So we'd best get started."

"Indeed," said Nighteye as he regained his composure and stood up, "Our top priority is to confirm the girl's location and take her into our custody as quickly as possible using the most accurate data we can ascertain. I am counting on the help of all of you in this room." The gathered pros and students were dismissed then as Clay and Slade went to a table outside of the room and sat down with the rest of their friends. It was obvious what was weighing on Izuku and Mirio's mind.

"If I had just rescued her then," said Midoriya with his head hung low, "even if Chisaki had resorted to force at least she would've been safe."

"You mean that's why you've been so distracted lately," said Kirishima, "I, that's just damn frustrating."

"We all know you tried Deku," consoled Uraraka from her seat at the table.

"I still agree with what Clay said," Slade chimed in, "maybe you could've gotten her away but it's just as if not more likely that you both would've died in the attempt and then who would've saved her?" no one was sure if this had any positive effect as the elevator to the lobby opened and Aizawa stepped out.

"Is there some kind of funeral I don't know about," said the Erasure Hero as he approached his students.

"Oh hello Mr. Aizawa sir," said Tsuyu politely for the rest of them.

"Just call me Eraser Head outside of school," said their sensei as he stopped in front of them, "anyway I suppose it's just my luck you all got involved in this. I was actually going to recommend a suspension of your work studies before all this."

"WHAT!" Said most of the gathered students at the table before Kirishima spoke up, "But why sir?"

"I take it you did hear the part about the League of Villains being involved right?" Replied Aizawa, "That changes more than a few things." The pro hero sighed before continuing. "My big concern is you, Midoriya. You haven't fully earned my trust again, but I'm positive that if I tried to stop you now you'd only take matters into your own hands again and do something reckless. So instead I've decided I'll watch you and make sure you do this the right way, with your head. Can you do at least that, problem child?" He made his point with a light punch to where Izuku's heart was

Midoriya nodded in understanding, knowing full well what he was asking. "And one more thing, just to give you some peace of mind. Even if you didn't save her before, you still may have managed to give her hope. So eyes up and keep looking forward."

"I will!" declared Izukuk as Uraraka was actually sniffling a bit at the moving scene before her.

"That's right," said Mirio as he pulled himself out of his own funk and stood up, "we'll definitely save her next time Midoriya!"

"We will, no matter what!" agreed Midoriya as he looked at all of his friends, "We'll save her together!"

**And so the plot moves forward! Our heroes now have a clear goal and once all the pieces fall into place they'll move in with the rest of the heroes. In the meantime, I hope you all enjoyed this latest chapter and as always feel free to leave a comment or review about what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as preparations complete and the raid on the hideout begins! 'Til next time.**


	5. Commence the Raid

**Commence the Raid**

**Hello everyone and welcome to this, slightly late, chapter of Hailstorm! No guest review questions to answer this week so let's get the show on the road!**

U.A. Gym Gamma

Even though a few days had passed since the meeting at Nighteye's agency, it was more than a little obvious that what was discussed still lingered in the minds of the work study students. All of them had been put on standby while the pros narrowed down the number of locations where the girl, Eri, was being kept. In the meantime, none of them were allowed to discuss what was happening with their other classmates. A fact which was more than a little ironic for Clay and Slade given that they'd already spilled the beans to Jirou and Momo before the meeting.

It still made for a daily tension of sorts as each of them checked their phones hourly or sometimes even more often than that for any kind of update on the situation. Clay did his best to pry information out of his Uncle, but the man was sticking by what he'd told them that day.

Flashback: Nighteye Agency

"Try not to get too worked up about this," said Aizawa, causing Midoriya to pause for a moment, "the big three are capable of holding their own out there with the pros, but the rest of you will have to be minimally involved. In fact, Uraraka, Asui and Kirishima, since you didn't really volunteer for this you're under no obligation to participate so it's your call if you want to continue."

"Mr. Aiza-I mean Eraser Head," said Uraraka as she got up from her seat, "after everything we just heard I can't see any reason why I shouldn't at least try to help."

"And I want to pitch in too," said Tsuyu, "I'll help however I can."

"I'm pretty sure the pros already recognize your abilities," said Tamaki in his usual withdrawn tone, "they wouldn't have asked you to be in that meeting otherwise. I've seen for myself that a first year can shine much brighter than me."

"You know you're gonna have to let that go at some point," commented Nejire as she leaned forward in her seat.

"Well if I can use my power to help that girl even a little bit," said Kirishima as he slammed his hardened fists together, "then you can count me in Eraser Head!"

"Just so long as you remember that our only goal is to rescue Eri," said Aizawa, "we're not stepping in further than that. The chances of the league and Shie Hassaikai cooperating are pretty low at the moment given the recent altercation. But if the police happen to be mistaken about that assessment and they are working together, then we're pulling you out immediately, understood."

"Yes sir!" exclaimed everyone with varying degrees of determination.

U.A. Cafeteria: Now

Clay and Slade knew something was up with Midoriya. Their friend was ready and more than eager to jump in and help Eri, but despite that he'd been acting down. Currently, said green-haired boy was just staring as his katsudon as if he was looking through it. "Are you not hungry Midoriya," asked Todoroki suddenly, causing the U.A. student to almost jump from his seat.

"What, oh yeah sure," said Midoriya as he made a show of putting some of the food in his mouth.

"Are you feeling alright lately," asked Iida, who was sitting next to him.

"You've been on edge and rather depressed ever since you started your work study," noted Todoroki.

"Oh, uh, have I been acting that way?" Asked Izuku innocently as he went back to his food.

"Big time," said Slade, "I'm half convinced you'd still be moping even if Uraraka was holding your hand right now."

"You don't really think it's that bad do you?!" exclaimed Midoriya, likely embarrassed by the image he now had in his head.

"Well if something is troubling you just remember," said Iida with his classic air chopping maneuver, "we're friends and we're here if you ever want to talk. I seem to recall you saying something similar to me when I was heading off to my own internship and acting like a fool." That was the straw that broke the camel's back as tears started flowing from Midoriya's eyes, and Iida's hair stood on end. "AAAAH! Oh dear, was it something I said?"

"No, it's all okay," said Izuku as he ate the rest of his lunch before trying to wipe the tears from his eyes, "I just, heroes aren't supposed to cry."

"Who told ya that?" Asked Clay, "Despite their outward appearances heroes are still people in the end. And every so often, people need to cry if for no other reason than to let out some pent up feelings. Even my Uncle has cried a time or two?"

"So tears can form even in Aizawa sensei's dry eyes," noted Todoroki.

"Yeah, but don't tell him I told you that," said Clay, "If you think the class work load sucks now just wait 'til you see what he does to students who think he's getting soft."

"Agreed," said Iida, "our sensei is a master of discipline and won't hesitate to use it on us!"

"But it does give me an idea," said Slade as he looked at Midoriya, "Let's talk later. I think I might know how to help."

U.A. Heights Alliance: That Evening

"So what is it you guys wanted to talk about?" Questioned Midoriya as the group sat out on the lawn in front of the dorms.

"Well it's obvious the whole 'Eri' situation has been eating at you the last couple of days," said Clay, "but you have a small group of friends you can still talk to about that. Given the breakdown you had earlier today I gotta ask, is something else bothering you?" Midoriya looked unsure for a moment as to whether or not he should answer.

"If it's an All Might thing, remember we pretty much know as much about it as you," Slade pointed out, "so you shouldn't need to keep it a secret from us-."

"All Might could die this year!" Izuku suddenly blurted out, really getting their attention. "The reason Sir Nighteye and All Might parted ways in the first place is because All Might refused to retire and find a successor sooner." This information actually stunned his two friends as both of them tried to figure out what exactly to say to that. Both knew it must not have been good news but to hear that the idol of their friend could die at some point, it was more than a little to take in.

"What did he say?" Questioned Clay suddenly, making Midoriya look up at him, "How exactly did Nighteye word his explanation to All Might?"

"H-He said All Might would do battle with an incredibly powerful villain and meet an unspeakably gruesome death," explained Midoriya with a few tears coming to his eyes.

"So," said Slade, "It sounds like he might've actually been wrong on that one."

"What, but Sir Nighteye can see the future," said Midoriya, "how could he be wrong?"

"Well what Nighteye sees is only a narrow vision of a person's future decisions," Clay reminded him, "Or are you thinking about what he said when he suggested his vision of someone's death was unavoidable?"

"Well, All Might said that he ended up exactly how Nighteye said he would," explained Midoriya, "and if he's not wrong about that then what about his death?"

"If I might play the optimist for a moment," said Slade, "All Might did in fact fight an incredibly fierce villain, but he won and now he's retired with very little reason to be anywhere near a fight again. And the way you phrased it, 'could die this year' I think you said, makes it sound like the supposed event could've already passed."

"W-well it's true that Nighteye's vision might be slightly less informative the further he looks into the future," admitted Midoriya, "but why would he say the death he sees is unavoidable?"

"Because that is what he himself likely believes," said Clay. "It's possible after years of peering into other's futures he's formed a preconceived notion that some of the things he sees in the future are unavoidable, or that because he sees them they'll come true."

"Are you suggesting he's afraid to use his quirk?" Questioned Midoriya.

"The future can be a scary thing," said Slade, "take right now for instance. Everyone who grew up seeing All Might in their lives is now asking the question of what tomorrow will bring now that the symbol of peace is gone. Many expect it to be a dimmer future, but that doesn't mean it's what's going to happen. I believe Sir Nighteye is overestimating himself and putting too much value in his quirk, which is likely why he thinks what he sees will always come true."

"But as they like to say in time traveling Sci Fi," Clay picked up, "the future is ever-changing. In my opinion, the true outcome is only really determined when it reaches that moment. Nighteye might believe what he sees will come to pass but if he was one hundred percent sure of it then why would he even bother warning All Might?"

"I, that makes a certain bit of sense in a weird way," said Midoriya with a hand on his chin, "He doesn't like using his quirk when he thinks death is possible, but he's got no way of actually knowing that him seeing something causes it to end up that way. He wants to be wrong about it, he wants fate to change!"

"And I'm certain All Might thinks the same," said Slade, "So fight fate with him and show his former sidekick that no future is written in stone."

"I will!" Said Midoriya with his fists clenched, "You're both right, there's no sense in moping around waiting for the inevitable, not when something can still be done! So I'll show All Might and Nighteye that someone can fight fate and I'll start by rescuing Eri!" The three friends cheered excitedly at this prospect as they bumped fists, the somber atmosphere completely gone as a weight was lifted from their friend's mind. It was two days after this little chat, when they finally got the call.

Sir Nighteye's Hero Office

"They're keeping her where?!" exclaimed Rock Lock as he heard the report from All Might's former sidekick.

"The main headquarters of the Shie Hassaikai," Ryukyu answered for him, "Kai Chisaki's residence."

"So what was the point of all that investigating in the first place?!" Questioned Rock Lock.

"We managed to gather a variety of new information," answered Nighteye, "including some of the layout of the facility beneath the residence."

"What's our confirmation that she's even still there?" Questioned Fat Gum. Nighteye's answer to this was to, surprisingly, pull out a pink box containing a magical girl action figure of sorts. "One of the Shie Hassaikai members purchased a toy like this the other day at a local department store. This item is typically favored by young girls."

"But what proof do you have that he's not some weirdo who's into cutesy stuff," objected Fat Gum.

"Because I was there when he purchased the item," explained Nighteye, "I employed my quirk to see what he planned to do with it and my assumption was correct. He took it to where the girl is being held."

"So after all that talk about being afraid to use your quirk you go ahead and use Foresight anyway!" Exclaimed Rock Lock. 'Probably because he gives a lot less of a damn if death is near in a villain's future,' thought Clay.

"I recall saying that I would use my quirk when our path was more clear," replied Nighteye.

"But it does mean we finally have all the information we need for a raid, right," said Fat Gum.

"Correct," said Centipeder, "we already have a time selected thanks to the information from our stakeouts."

"And we've already obtained a search warrant from the police," Added Bubble Girl happily, "So all that's left now-."

"Is to go barging right in!" Said a determined Fat Gum.

"Hey that was supposed to be my line," whined Bubble Girl at having her thunder stolen.

"Yeah let's do it!" Yelled Mirio as he waved his arms around animatedly, "We're gonna rescue that girl, are you all with me!" He continued to repeat this and a number of other lines, signifying how pumped up he was about the whole thing. 'Guess he's back to normal,' thought Slade, having heard about the Big Three member's recently depressed state.

It was good news at this point as everyone changed into their costumes and put on their game faces, more than ready to take down anyone that got in their way. "Now then," said Nighteye, "Let the operation begin!"

In Front of the Police Station: 8:00 am

More than a couple dozen officers all decked out in tactical gear with riot shields stood at attention while the pro heroes recruited by Nighteye stood in their own group. Currently, a police sergeant was going over the details of the operation including what little they knew of the underground facility. "It's all moving pretty fast now," said Kirishima as he and the U.A. students stood to the side either making final adjustments to their costumes or going over the handouts of the known Hassaikai members and their quirks.

"You're surprisingly energetic for this hour of the morning," noted Amajiki.

"Yeah but I'm pretty nervous," said Uraraka as she fidgeted.

"It all feels pretty official now that we're working with the police," noted Tsuyu as Ryukyu approached.

"It takes time to adjust at first," she said, "school can teach you a lot but there are some things you only learn from experience."

"I guess that explains how all the pros are so calm about this," said Kirishima as he tried to keep himself from shaking in excitement and nervousness.

"Speaking of the pros, has anyone seen Gran Torino," questioned Midoriya.

"According to Uncle," said Clay as he checked the valves on his sleeves, "the League of Villains is on the move, so he was sent to investigate."

"Maybe we'll get lucky and take both the League and Hassaikai down in one fell swoop," said Kirishima with a clenched fist.

"Don't get ahead of yourselves," said Aizawa, causing some of the students to tense up with his sudden appearance, "remember what you promised. If things get out of hand, you take cover, understand?" The U.A. students all answered in the affirmative as the police sergeant spoke up.

"To all the heroes gathered here," said the Sergeant, "the situation could become violent quickly, so if you encounter even a hint of suspicious behavior or resistance, signal for back up immediately. Remember, it is imperative that each of you carry out your respective assignments so stay sharp!" The gathered officers saluted then as the Sergeant gave out his final orders. "The raid shall commence at 08:30 hours, now move out!"

Shie Hassaikai Main Stronghold: 08:30 am

The residence of Kai Chisaki was a rather large estate that more or less resembled a fancy bunker on the outside. It's courtyard was surrounded by a large wall with the traditional style one would expect from a Japanese roof. The main force of police officers as well as the pro heroes were all situated outside the main entrance with the sergeant poised to press the button for the estate's speaker system. "Once we've read the warrant," said the Sergeant, "you'll all be free to move. So act swiftly."

'Don't gotta tell me twice,' thought Clay as he generated his cloud gauntlets and greaves while Slade picked out a higher density. The gathered students all tensed as the Sergeant reached for the intercom switch. But just as he was about to press it, Slade heard a slight noise which he'd come to recognize. "GET BACK!" yelled the density shifter upon realizing what was about to happen.

No sooner did he say this than the front gate was busted open by the massive fist of Rikiya Katsukame. The impact was so strong it sent a number of officers flying into the air. Acting quickly, Midoriya leapt up and snatched one out of the air while Clay and Aizawa used a combination of his scarf and cloud cushions to catch the remaining officers. "It's too early in the morning for visitors," said the massive, bird-masked Hassaikai member as he used his quirk to buff up his muscles even more.

"How in the world do they already know we're here?" Questioned Rock Lock.

"Doesn't matter," said Ryukyu as Rikiya lifted a muscled up arm and threw a powerful blow. The resulting impact sent out a shockwave which forced everyone to back up a little as a dust cloud temporarily covered the affected area. When it cleared, Ryukyu had grown to several times her regular size as her body took on a much more dragon-like shape. "We can't afford to split up too many forces now," she said as she held their enemy's fist back, "So you all go ahead and let the Ryukyu agency handle this!"

She then proceeded to slam a clawed hand down on the Yakuza member, immobilizing him for the moment. Uraraka, Tsuyu and Nejire split off to back her up while the main force rushed head long into the compound to face the foe awaiting them. 'Don't worry little one,' thought Clay, 'this time, you will be saved!'

**The raid has begun at last! But what awaits our heroes beneath the layer of the Hassaikai? Before we get to all that, though, I'd like to give out a quick apology for this being a little late. I was rather burned out after the latest posting of Armory of the Forgotten Hero. Despite that, I hope you all were still able to enjoy this chapter and as always feel free to leave a comment or review about what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as our heroes come face to face with the Eight Expendables! 'Til then.**


	6. The Loyal Servants of Hassaikai

**The Loyal Servants of Hassaikai**

**Hello everyone, first thing I'd like to do is give a quick apology for this chapter coming out a day late. I went into overdrive on the season finale of my other fic, Armory of the Forgotten Hero (Which is out right now but FFN is being weird about notifications so here's the official announcement). Anyway, you've all come for a story so let's dive in!**

Main Residence of Kai Chisaki

"We have a warrant to search this premises," said the Head Sergeant as he, a force of police officers with riot shields, most of the gathered pros and 1-A students charged in through the main gate.

"What, get out of here!" Yelled one of the Yakuza thugs as a large collection of them moved out of the door to the compound to intercept the police. Many charged forward swinging their fists or other assorted blunt weapons while some actually resorted to using their quirks. Slade had to up his density to block a swarm of needles aimed at him before Clay leapt over his head and knocked the Yakuza out with a hard kick from his cloud greaves. The density shifter then continued to barrel through thug after thug, his enhanced weight making it impossible for them to slow down his momentum. The other pros broke out their assorted quirks or skills along the way, bringing down the majority of the Yakuza trying to stop them and clearing a path for Nighteye and Fat Gum's groups to barge into the main entrance.

"Sorry we can't take our shoes off," said Fat Gum, "but we're kind of in a hurry here!" The hallways were less crowded as the pros and students rushed down them, following Nighteye's lead.

"They seemed to be somewhat prepared for us," noted Amajiki as they ran, "our plans weren't leaked were they?"

"I think they just managed to catch wind of our plan," stated the Police Sergeant, "their response was faster than expected but it's not cohesive. Groups like these can usually coordinate fairly well, so the fact that they're simply swarming means they didn't have time to plan a trap."

"It's a staple of groups like these," continued Aizawa, "they all have a strong bond with their boss and those they see as brothers. Loyalty is all the more sacred because they're part of the underworld."

"But where are the bosses then?!" Questioned Kirishima angrily, "these guys are out there fighting for them while they hide or run away, how can that be considered manly or loyal?" No one had time to answer his question as Nighteye brought them to a halt at one of the walls which had a flower vase and a picture with Japanese writing.

"The entrance to their underground headquarters is here," said Nighteye as he moved the vase aside. "It's activated by hidden switches which need to be pressed in a specific order, once that's done." He didn't need to finish the rest of his sentence as the section of wall they were standing in front of moved back and slid aside to reveal a hidden staircase.

"Wow, they went all ninja-hideout with this place," said Bubble Girl. And much like ninjas, a trio of Yakuza thugs ran out from the shadows, attempting to stab the heroes with an assortment of knives. Centipeder reacted quickly and shot out a pair of centipede-shaped tendrils to restrain two of the thugs while Bubble Girl made use of her own quirk, popping a soap bubble in her attacker's face to blind him before grabbing his arm and twisting him to the floor with a takedown maneuver. "We'll hold these guys here, you keep going!"

"You heard Bubble Girl," said Nighteye to the remaining raiders, "Let's move!" The group hesitated only a moment before they proceeded down the stairs and turned into a long hallway. But before they got very far, the collective heroes ran into a large wall in the middle of the hallway.

"I thought your quirk could see the future Nighteye," complained Rock Lock, "how did you miss something like this?"

"His quirk sees future decisions by the people he's watching," Clay reminded him, "if the one he was watching didn't see this wall put up then neither did he."

"I'll take a quick look then," said Mirio as he stepped forward and examined the wall.

"But won't you be naked if you use your quirk right now?" Questioned Kirishima, remembering all too well the sight 1-A had seen fighting him.

"Don't worry," said Amajiki, "Mirio's costume is made of a special fiber which uses his hair. It'll become permeable along with him whenever he uses his quirk." Which was proving very useful right now as the big three member stuck his head through the wall for a moment before pulling it back out.

"The hallway continues past this point," reported Mirio, "this wall was specially constructed just to block our way so breaking through it probably won't be easy."

"So that Chisaki guy's quirk can tear apart and reform matter to this extent," Rock Lock thought aloud.

"It has to mean we're getting close," said Midoriya as he and Kirishima activated their quirks.

"Nice trick or not," said Kirishima, "this guy's an idiot if he thinks we'll be stopped by some wall!" The two 1-A students hit the obstacle at the same time, shattering the stone completely to create a hole big enough for even Fat Gum to fit through easily.

"Good work you two," said Mirio, "now let's get moving!" The group complied as they continued their run through the hallways. 'This is weird,' thought Clay as his eyes darted around the area, 'they sent out a whole host of their goons upstairs to slow us down, but where's the rest of Chisaki's personal guard?' He got his answer soon enough as the room began to shake around them. Or, to be more accurate, the room was twisting and contorting like it was made of liquid.

"What's going on," asked Midoriya as everyone tried to keep their footing.

"It must be Mimic's quirk," said the Police Sergeant as he stumbled around along with them, "He can enter objects and control them as if they were his own body. But he usually can't control something this large!"

"It's more than likely their performance enhancing drug," surmised Fat Gum as he tried not to bump into anyone in the swaying room.

"Any chance you can stop this guy from using his quirk?" Slade Asked Eraser Head as he increased his density to get better footing.

"I can't do much of anything without seeing his real body," replied Eraser Head, "But that's not our only option. Clay, get us a platform above the floor!"

"On it," replied the cloud wielder as he floated off the floor and produced a thin but dense layer of clouds which everyone hopped onto.

"That's quite a useful quirk you got there," complimented Fat Gum, "the floor can thrash all it wants now but it won't slow us down anymore!"

"Don't be so sure," said Clay as he tried to move them forward, only for a wall to raise up and block their way.

"We won't get anywhere at this rate," said Mirio as he jumped off and raced towards the wall.

"Mirio, what are you doing?" Called Amajiki, unable to follow after his friend.

"Time is of the essence right now," said Mirio, "the Hassaikai know it so they're trying to stall us. I'm going on ahead to try and slow them down. Catch up to me when you can!" Amajiki tried protesting more, but his words weren't heard as the permeation quirk user slipped through the wall.

"We need to bust through that wall now!" exclaimed Kirishima as he urged Clay to move his cloud platform closer. But the room closed in around them as a hole opened in the floor.

"Crap," said Clay as he quickly dropped the platform downward, already knowing he was playing into the enemy's hands by doing so. The good news, at least, was that this new room wasn't being controlled by Mimic. It meant he could withdraw his cloud platform to further strengthen his gauntlets and greaves while also forming a long cloud scarf around his shoulders.

"Now where in the world are we?" Asked Midoriya as they looked around the new room.

"Further from our target is where," answered Rock Lock, "we need to find a way out."

"I'm afraid that's a bit out of the question for you government authorized thugs," said a man in a type of scarecrow mask. He was joined by another man in a green button-up shirt and a bird beak mask who was wielding a sword, as well as a much larger bald man wearing a type of medical mask. 'Setsuno, Hojo, and Tabe,' Clay surmised as he recalled the info sheets he'd read on the Shie Hassaikai, 'all of them are members of the Eight Expendables.'

"Guess we've got a fight on our hands," said Fat Gum as he brought his fist into his open palm, "I just hope you petty criminals are ready for the strength of a pro-." The hero was suddenly silenced as Amajiki raised his hand up to stop him.

"The pros should save their strength for rescuing our target," said Amajiki with a surprising amount of determination, "these guys are only meant to slow us down, so I'll handle them myself."

"You don't have to do that," said Kirishima, "we can take them on together!"

"I'd like you all to say," said the blond expendable as he tilted his sword, "I'll be able to you're your whole group then."

"We'll have to leave them up to you pros," said the Police Sergeant, "our guns won't work on him."

"Very good, you've all done your homework," sneered the expendable, "which means I can really cut loose!" The man shot forward with his hand outstretched, attempting to use his quirk to steal something. But Eraser Head was faster and used his eyes to prevent that. "What, my quirk isn't working!"

His tall accomplice attempted to step in by pulling out a gun and aiming it at Aizawa, only to be quickly disarmed by a speeding cloud blade from Clay. "Their quirks are off, now's your chance Amajiki!" He said while withdrawing his cloud. The big three member didn't hesitate on that signal as he produced several large octopus tentacles from his hand and wrapped up the villains, simultaneously seizing their weapons while slamming them all on the ground.

"Like I said before I can handle these guys," said Amajiki as he crushed the gathered weapons in a crab claw, "It isn't the best move right now for all of us to fight them because they're trying to stall us. But if they're just stalling me then the rest of you can head on. You'll need everyone's quirk for this including Eraser Head's. I know this is something I can do Fat Gum so please, get going!" His word were obviously met with a bit of hesitation by the round pro before he turned and headed for what they hoped was an exit.

"Let's get going," said Fat Gum, clearly surprising Kirishima as the rest of the pros started to move in that direction.

"Hey why are you all leaving," said the blond expendable as he attempted to use his quirk again, before being quickly shut down by Aizawa who also moved in and knocked out the expendable with the scarecrow mask.

"Beat them before they can fight back Amajiki," said Aizawa as he also moved towards the exit.

"I will," said the big three member as he slammed them all into the nearby wall, "and take care of Mirio. I know he'll try way too hard and get in over his head so please, keep him safe." The 1-A students nodded in understanding before heading out the door, continuing their race down the maze of hallways.

"Are you crazy just leaving him back there Fat Gum," asked a worried Kirishima.

"His attitude may make it seem otherwise," replied the Pro, "but he's stronger than most of us here, so I have faith in him. Truth of the matter is, his weakness is self-confidence. He feels pressured to be perfect and it often causes him to mess up. Despite that he still became one of U.A.'s big three, so if he says he can do it I've got no reason not to trust him and believe in him."

"Are you sure?" Asked Kirishima, "I can't help but worry about the guy."

"Look if you've left a comrade to guard your back then you have to be a man about it and trust him!" exclaimed Fat Gum.

"Got it, he'll handle those guys no problem!" exclaimed Kirishima. 'Didn't take much to change your mind did it,' thought Slade as they continued to run.

"We've got our own concerns to worry about at the moment," said Aizawa as he looked down the hallway, "I'm not sure if any of you noticed, but the hallways and floors aren't twisting like they were before."

"Is it possible we've gone beyond the point he's able to control with his quirk," suggested Clay, "there were a bunch of police officers behind us when we went through the floor. There's a chance he's too preoccupied to come after us."

"You really think there's a limit to how much of this building he can control," asked Rock Lock.

"We're only talking in theory at the moment," said Aizawa, "his quirk allows him to move into objects to control them. It's possible his real body is actually moving around in the building and isn't far from the sections he's manipulating."

"But doesn't that beg the question of how quickly he can move through the building," Slade pointed out, "Once he's determined the officers back there aren't a main priority, won't he come after us?" The density shifter's question was answered fairly quickly as a large stone hand shot out of the wall right at Eraser Head.

"Sensei!" Exclaimed Clay as he, Fat Gum, and Kirishima all reached for the erasure hero, trying to prevent him from being pushed into a newly-formed hole in the wall. Fat Gum reached him first, managing to push his colleague out of the way. But he himself was pushed down the hole in the process.

"Fat, be careful down there," said Eraser Head as he got back to his feet.

"Oh no," said Midoriya as he noticed another absence, "Kirishima's gone too!"

"Ah he must've gotten trapped in-between Fat Gum and the wall," said Slade with a face palm.

"Whatever the case," said Nighteye, "we have to keep moving. Fat Gum is a seasoned pro so he should be able to handle whatever's thrown at him. We need to catch up to Mirio." The group collectively agreed as they again ran down the pathway towards their goal. But it didn't take long for the floors, ceiling and walls to start contorting again.

"Not this time," said Clay as he spread his clouds out into multiple small platforms this time for the collective pros and students to jump on.

"Rock Lock, your quirk," Ordered Aizawa as he tried and failed to find the main body of their foe.

"Yeah yeah," he said, "quit acting like the de facto leader. DEAD BOLT!" The pro put his hand on the wall and turned it like one would turn a door knob. A red wave of energy spread throughout the area and stopped the movement of the room. This was his quirk Lock Down in action: anything he used it on would be locked in place. It might not work on living things or excessively large areas, but the area he did cover was more than enough for them to keep on moving.

"Incoming," said Slade as he noticed some movement from behind them. The wall itself was racing towards them now from the area Rock Lock's quirk hadn't reached.

"Full Cowling Shoot Style!" Said Midoriya as he leapt forward and smashed the oncoming stone again and again, breaking through it. Slade moved in as well, tackling any sections his friend missed and smashed through them with a high density body.

"We need to pinpoint his location," said Aizawa, "otherwise he's just gonna keep aiming for us and funneling us into traps." 'And I've already got my hands full pulling people away from a charging wall,' thought Clay as he gathered those on his clouds to a location behind him and the other pros. Slade and Midoriya were continuing to smash through the charging wall columns until suddenly, it all pulled away.

"Oh that can't be good," said Clay, "Midoriya, you and Slade best get back here before-shit!" Mimic had already made his next move as a collection of walls came down around them, splitting the group up. "Well this is just great," said Clay as he noted that he'd somehow wound up with Rock Lock as the other occupant in the newly formed prison.

"Hey, can anyone hear us out there?" Called Rock Lock.

"We're fine," said Nighteye, "but be on the lookout for their next move!"

"Yeah no kidding," Said Rock Lock as he and Clay glanced around the confined space, "You got any good tricks for busting through walls cloud kid?"

"My quirk's uses lie in versatility not brute power, and this wall is definitely tougher than the basic armor on U.A.'s smaller robots," explained Clay, "but if we just wait a moment we might-." His explanation was interrupted by a roar as a massive shape dropped from the ceiling. The pro and student rolled in opposite directions to avoid the impact as Clay formed a pair of spike balls for combat against, Rikiya Katsukame? 'But he was out front so how can he be here, unless.' "Rock Lock heads up!"

His warning came just in time as a familiar, knife-wielding blonde leapt up from seemingly nowhere and tried to stab him in the back. Rock Lock managed to turn in time to block the stab with his hand and, despite the pain of having a blade driven through it, managed to lock her weapon in place before striking back with a punch of his own. But the one he struck turned into grey goo from the attack, confirming Clay's fears as he moved out of the way of 'Rikiya's' fist. It seems that altercation or not, the worst case scenario had come to pass. The Hassaikai was getting some help in their current operation, from the League of Villains.

**And the obstacles just keep getting tougher as our heroes now contend not only with the Shie Hassaikai, but members of their recurring enemy, the League of Villains. Oh, and an early Happy New Year to everyone as well. Hopefully this latest chapter was an enjoyable early present for 2020 and as always feel free to leave a comment or review about what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as our heroes contend with the combined might of two evil organizations! 'Til then.**


	7. Questionable Partnership

**Questionable Partnership **

**Hello everyone and welcome to the latest chapter of Hailstorm Vol. 2. No guest review questions today so let's dive on in!**

Shie Hassaikai Underground Hideout

The situation had gone from manageable to bad real fast. Thanks to Mimic's boosted quirk, the main group had all been split up into smaller parties by a number of walls. Clay and Rock Lock had been caught somewhere in the middle and to make matters worse, the League of Villains had finally shown its face with the arrival of Himiko Toga, who'd managed to take out Rock Lock after he was distracted by a double made by the villain Twice. Clay himself managed to dodge out of the way of what he surmised was a double of Rikiya Katsukame before firing one of his currently spike-ball shaped clouds at Toga, forcing her away from Rock Lock as the hero-in-training landed next to him protectively.

"Oh look who it is," sang Toga happily as she clasped her hands while still holding her knife, "aren't you one of Midoriya's friends, cloudy seer or something like that?"

"My hero name is Cirrus," replied Clay as he did his best to discretely wrap some of his clouds around Rock Lock's wounds, "and you're Himiko Toga. Tell me, why's the League of Villains helping out the Yakuza? I thought you guys had something of a fight."

"We did," said Toga as a frown crossed her face, "that Chisaki guy killed Magne and hurt Compress. I really didn't have a choice to be here but." She took a ready stance as her manic smile returned to her face, "Now that I know you're here, that must mean Midoriya isn't far behind! Hey, if you take me to him I'll make your death nice and quick!"

"Yeah that's a hard PASS!" Exclaimed the cloud wielder as he sent his other gathered spike balls at both Toga and the Rikiya double. The blond nimbly flipped and rolled out of the way, laughing as if she was playing a game while 'Katsukame' took the brunt of the attack, receiving only enough damage to make some of his edges turn back to goo. Clay went airborne then with Rock Lock in tow to avoid a pincer maneuver from the two villains.

'Gotta keep a fair distance here,' he thought as he sent Rock Lock to float in the air above him before forming two large cloud fists and sending them downward. The Rikiya clone managed to block them with his own large fists while Toga jumped off his shoulder and scrambled up the high density clouds. Clay responded quickly as he tried reshaping them into a sphere to catch his adversary, but she was quicker and managed to leap back down before they closed around her. 'Don't waste a move,' he thought as he reshaped the cloud again into a giant buzz saw which he sent flying down at his opponent.

Ordinarily he wouldn't use such a lethal move, but given that the enemy who was currently catching and holding the attack with his massive hands wasn't even alive, he figured he could use a bit more force than normal. "Now try this," he said as he reshaped the saw into a wheel with long spikes that dug into the clone's skin, "Cloud Wheel Grinder!" The part of the cloud 'Rikiya' didn't had his hand on started spinning then, tearing into the clone at high speed until his body started breaking down from the spinning attack. Before long, he was reduced back to grey goo which was flung all around the enclosed space before he stopped the cloud and returned it to float near him.

"Wow, Twice's doubles really aren't as durable as the real thing," commented Toga, "Oh well. Guess it's just you and-BAAAAAM!" Her little remark was cut short as Midoriya busted through the wall with Full Cowling activated as Aizawa followed closely after him.

"Clay, are you in here?!" Called Midoriya as he looked around frantically.

"Try glancing up real fast," said Clay, "And we've got an enemy too!"

"Where?" Asked Aizawa as he scanned the room. Clay wondered what he was talking about until he noticed that Toga had managed to change her form into Rock Lock. 'Shit, she must've gotten enough blood to transform.'

"In front of you," Called Clay, "that's not Rock Lock down there!" His warning came just in time as 'Rock Lock' pulled out a knife and swiped at Midoriya. Eraser Head quickly turned his gaze on the imposter, causing her quirk to break apart and reveal, a very naked, Toga. 'She managed to ditch her clothes and change in that short of a time,' Clay thought in mild amazement as he flew down towards his comrades.

"Himiko Toga!" exclaimed Midoriya as he quickly backed away from her repeated slashes.

"You remember me!" exclaimed Toga happily as she continued to swipe at him, "I've wanted so badly to see you again, I'm so happy!" But before she could get in another strike, she was quickly wrapped up by Eraser Head's scarf as he yanked her towards him.

"You're done Himiko Toga," he said. A fact the murderous girl clearly disagreed on as she managed to grab his scarf and pull on it, changing her direction in midair to flip over Eraser Head and aim a knife attack at his shoulder. But it was deflected by a quickly moving, and relatively small, cloud shield which knocked her weapon out of her hand. Despite the attack not being successful, however, Toga still managed to unravel herself the rest of the way from Aizawa's scarf before leaping away.

Any attempt at pursuing her was quickly shut down as another wall was dropped in their way. "Sensei, are you alright?" Asked Midoriya with a hint of worry in his voice.

"I'm fine," replied the Erasure Hero as he checked his shoulder, "Clay managed to block it in time. More importantly, where's the real Rock Lock?"

"I got 'em," said the cloud user as he lowered the pro from the air where he'd been hovering back down to the floor, "I've been using my clouds to apply pressure to the knife wound so far, but he needs proper bandaging to keep from bleeding out."

"I'll take care of that," said Aizawa before turning to his friend, "Midoriya, Toga uses blood so collect the knives around the area."

"Right," replied the One for All holder as he rushed off to his new task.

"We've confirmed Toga is here," said Clay, "and I took out a double of Rikiya, so that must mean-."

"Yeah," said Eraser Head, "Jin Bubaigawara, the villain Twice, is around here somewhere as well."

Outer Hall: At About the Same Time

"I'm feeling excited!" exclaimed Twice as he and a copy of another Hassaikai member, a burly man with large fists, a white short-sleeved shirt and a bird mask which hid his face but not his mane of dark yellow hair, stepped out of a quickly appearing hole in the wall. "You know I was wondering what kind of heroes we'd go up against, but look at this! Some school boy in dragon scales and a normal looking businessman! What do you take the Yakuza for, get 'em big bro Rappa!"

The masked fighter stepped forward and threw an incredibly fast flurry of punches towards Nighteye and the other police officers before Slade stepped in with his arms held up in a blocking position. "Maximum density!" Slade just managed to say before he was barraged by an unbelievable number of punches which, even with his density, still felt like he was being pummeled by a mass of baseballs. 'This guy is nuts,' thought Slade, 'not only is he fast his blows are overwhelmingly strong, even Kirishima's maximum defense would barely keep up with this!' Fortunately for Slade, he only needed to hold out for a couple of seconds.

"You're quite strong," noted Nighteye as he ducked around Slade and used a powerful sweep kick to knock Rappa off his feet. Then, while his opponent was in midair, he threw out some kind of weighted weapons which knocked the villain across the room and slammed him into a wall with enough force to dent it.

"What in the world," said one of the police officers, "just happened?"

"These are my high density seals," explained Nighteye as he revealed two more business stamp-like weapons, "battle support items that weigh about five kilograms each. Given my businessman appearance, don't you think they're quite humorous?" 'As if anyone would laugh at them after seeing what you just did to that guy,' thought Slade as the pro continued. "'Make a prediction and move first.' After seeing the future of so many, it seems I can do so a little faster than others in close combat. Though even I couldn't predict the famous League of Villains would be working with the Yakuza."

"Well," Twice started to say before he noticed that his clone of Rappa was melting, "What, he melted already, what a useless Yakuza!" He didn't get to say much else as Nighteye threw two more of his seals at the villain, managing to cut off part of his mask and damage the shoulder of his costume. "Ack, damn it that hurt you bastard!" Twice proceeded to turn and flee down the hallway as the wall closed behind him, preventing pursuit.

"Blast it," said Slade as he dropped his density and tried to move forward, only to stumble a bit from the pain.

"Are you alright Mr. Mason," asked Nighteye as the density shifter took a moment to catch his breath.

"Y-yeah," replied Slade, "I just took a bit more of a beating than I expected from that guy. I'm still good to go."

"Very well," said Nighteye, "but if you feel you can't keep up I expect you to notify me or one of the pros immediately." Slade nodded in understanding as he and the rest of the officers rushed to the next wall which, for some reason, dropped all of a sudden.

"Hey Clay, is everyone alright?!" called the density shifter upon seeing his friends along with the two pros.

"We're good but the League-," Clay started to respond before a high-pitched yell suddenly filled the hallway. In the next instant, the entire hallway began warping again to the worst degree yet. The floors, walls and ceiling shook as multiple earthen pillars shot out of the wall and floor before continuing on into the hallway. The cloud wielder swore as he resumed using his cloud platforms to pull some of the less agile members off the floor and away from the walls.

'This is bad,' thought Clay as he looked around, 'it seems out of control at first glance, but everything is starting to close in.' "Can anyone locate the source of that voice?" Asked Aizawa as another screech rang through the hallways.

"It's echoing too much for me to get a fix," said Midoriya as he started looking around.

"We need to find him fast or we'll all be crushed!" exclaimed the Police Sergeant as he moved out of the way of one of the speeding earth pillars. Slade increased his density as he deflected another emerging rock formation, just so happening to glance up as he did so.

"The ceiling!" exclaimed the density shifter as he noticed a pair of eyes staring back at them. That was all the instruction Midoriya needed as he used Full Cowl to leap upwards, bouncing off the earthen columns before slamming his foot into the spot where all the screaming was coming from. The impact was enough to reveal the body of a man with spiked blond hair wearing a type of red business shirt, the true form of Mimic. This one glimpse was all Eraser Head needed as he used his gaze to stop the Hassaikai member's quirk, causing him to fall the rest of the way out of the ceiling and down towards the ground.

Nighteye reacted quickly and threw another one of his seals, striking Mimic's head while he was still in midair. "Grab him!" exclaimed the clairvoyant, prompting Izuku to leap around and snatch him before landing a short distance from Clay, who wasted no time in binding the Yakuza member with his clouds.

"Bye bye Mr. Yakuza!" sang the voices of both Twice and Toga, who'd been viewing the spectacle from atop two of the pillars before leaping out of sight.

"Did the League just, betray him," asked Aizawa as everyone else looked on with bewildered expressions.

"I think it's more accurate to say we were just used," said Nighteye with a tilt of his glasses, "whatever the case, the maze is now clear for us to proceed."

"Yeah but with everything jumbled around, it's hard to tell which direction we should go," said the Police Sergeant as two of his officers got to work tying up Mimic, allowing Clay to return his clouds to floating around him. The Yakuza wasn't out for very long as he propped back up to a sitting position. It was clear he was angry given his heavy breathing and if Clay hadn't known better he would've mistook it for that of a wild animal. "Alright Irinaka, put the walls and hallway back how they were!"

The Hassaikai member didn't answer, apparently too angry to even see straight right now. "I already know which direction Eri's room is," said Nighteye as he pointed down the disjointed hallway, "Besides, it seems whatever booster drug he was using has worn off."

"So he couldn't move it all back even if he wanted to now," said Eraser Head, "It seems Fat Gum's hunch was right on the money."

"Well we still need to worry about Toga and Twice," said the Police Sergeant before he was interrupted by the angry Mimic.

"Twice! Toga," he seethed, "I'll get you both, you filthy traitors!"

"Are there any other League members here," questioned Nighteye, "and if there are where are they?"

"Fuck if I know!" Exclaimed Mimic, "But I'll definitely find them all and when I do I'll break their skulls open!" He devolved into unintelligible shouting after that.

"It seems those two were the only ones here after all," noted Nighteye with a hint of relief.

"But even if they betrayed the Hassaikai, we can't expect them not to attack us," said one of the officers as their eyes were darting around the room.

"Given the League's crimes and reputation, as police officers we can't just ignore them," said the Police Sergeant.

"Uncle," Clay whispered so that no one else would hear, "I know you said we'd be out of this operation if it was discovered that the League is involved, but given the circumstances-."

"Why are you all still standing around talking," groaned Rock Lock from his position against the wall. He'd regained consciousness a few minutes ago after getting his wound bandaged. "Leave the League to the police and get moving! Remember what our top priority is!"

"That's true, we can hold any possible League attack off here," said the Police Sergeant as he turned to the rest of them, "You all need to get moving and rescue that girl."

"So get going!" Rock Lock practically yelled, "Don't waste all the time the others have bought you, move!" The gathered heroes glanced at each other for a moment before nodding in agreement, turning and running down the hallway.

"I'll definitely get her out Rock Lock!" Midoriya called back with clear determination in his voice. Everyone else was driven on by their own determination as they rushed down the hallway, passing by a man in a white mask who'd been taken out by Mirio before running into another solid wall at the end of the hallway. The One for All holder wasted no time in busting open a hole in the obstacle as they emerged to find the layout of the room resembling more of a crater than an actual room. Mirio was currently engaged in battle against the young leader of the Shie Hassaikai, Kai Chisaki, and behind him was the one they'd come for. Wrapped up in Mirio's tattered cape, Eri looked on in varying degrees of fear and wonder at the ones who'd come to rescue her.

**At last the goal is in sight for our heroes as they face their final obstacle, the Yakuza leader Overhaul! I know this chapter was a little short but this seemed an appropriate place to end it. Hopefully you all still enjoyed this chapter and as always, feel free to leave a comment or review about what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as our heroes battle to save the life of a tortured girl. 'Til then.**


	8. The Power to Torment

**The Power to Torment**

**Hello everyone and welcome to the latest chapter of Hailstorm Vol. 2! First off, a quick apology that this is coming out a day late but as they say life comes at you fast and I needed to attend to a quick family matter. Now, no guest review questions to answer this week so without further delay, onto the story!**

Underground Lair of Shie Hassaikai

There was little time to think as the group of heroes rushed through the hole Midoriya had just made in the wall, with the One for All holder flying straight at the plague-mask wearing Yakuza leader and managing to land a powerful blow on his left arm. The force was enough to send the surprised villain sliding several feet across the floor as Aizawa used his gaze to erase his quirk at the same time. "Nighteye, secure anyone that needs medical treatment!" Eraser Head called out. The clairvoyant did as instructed and rushed over to his tattered and bloodied protégé and the little blue-haired girl wearing nothing but rags with a horn growing out of her right temple.

'So that's Eri,' thought Clay as he and the remaining heroes turned their attention to Chisaki who was currently slapping the ground with his hand in a vain attempt to activate his quirk. "This is our chance, let's take him down!" Ordered Aizawa as he, Midoriya, Clay and Slade all ran, jumped or flew towards the desperate looking man.

"Dammit, wake up Chrono!" Yelled Chisaki with a manic glint in his eye. Aizawa realized what his intentions were and managed to push Midoriya out of the way, but in the process he was cut by an arrow that resembled a hair-like protrusion.

"Sensei!" Exclaimed Clay as he just barely dodged one of the appendages himself and located the source. One of Chisaki's main underlings, a man in a white, hooded robe wearing goggles and his own plague mask had fired his attack from his head. 'Shit, that's Chronostasis,' realized the cloud wielder. He'd written him off as out of the fight upon seeing his unconscious form during their entrance.

"I was hoping to pierce at least most of you with the long hand to slow your movements," remarked Chronostasis as he struggled to his hands and knees, "but I suppose I shouldn't expect anything less from heroes." Clay wanted to strike back at the Yakuza member until he saw Chisaki move out of the corner of his eye. 'Got to be quick about this,' he realized as he sent a number of cloud platforms across the room.

"CHISAKI!" Yelled Midoriya as he rushed towards the man, realizing almost too late that his quirk was active again. The Yakuza leader slammed his hand on the ground right as Midoriya was on top of him, causing the surface to shatter and reshape into a collection of massive spikes that towered several feet in the air while scattering the gathered heroes.

"Is everyone okay," Slade called out from between one of the spike formations, having sustained little damage thanks to raising his density.

"We're okay up here," Clay called out from his cloud perch as he had Midoriya on one cloud and Nighteye, Mirio and Eri on another, "but I don't see Aizawa anywhere."

"I think I might know where he went," said Slade as he noted a large hole in the ground.

"I won't let my plans be ruined by people like you!" Kai Chisaki called out suddenly as everyone noticed him approaching the body of another one of his followers, a man in a black cloak with a bird mask and wide-brimmed hat, Shin Nemoto. "I won't let it all end here!" He proceeded to grasp the face of his follower as the two of them were suddenly engulfed in a flash of light and swirling dust. "I can admit, with my own dignity still intact, that Lemillion was stronger than me. But it all comes to nothing now, so I'll have you return Eri to me!"

Clay hadn't thought it was possible, but the man had actually torn apart his subordinate's body and his own with his quirk before pulling it back together into a grotesque monstrosity. Now he had four large, fleshy red arms and his bulk had increased by a fair bit, not to mention all of his earlier injuries from Mirio were all healed. "That was the worst feeling ever for a moment," said Chisaki, "but I feel much better now than I did before."

"While I now feel like I want to hurl," quipped Clay, more to hide his nervousness and to take stock of the situation. Lemillion was too injured to fight while Nighteye was protecting him and Eri. That left the three of them, but someone needed to find Eraser Head given that he'd also noticed Chronostasis was gone too.

"I'm something of an obsessive about cleanliness," said Chisaki, "It always makes my blood boil when someone touches me, so this is the first time I've ever been forced to this point. But it's worse for you isn't it, Lemillion? If you hadn't gotten involved with Eri and by extension me, you'd still have your quirk. But now it and your dream are lost forever, because you are all going to die!" The man-made monster charged forward as he attempted to use his powers on the floor again.

But Midoriya was quicker, leaping off of Clay's clouds and kicking one of the spikes towards Chisaki. The Yakuza leader managed to halt it with his hand before reforming it into spikes aimed at the hero-in-training. Clay reacted swiftly and yanked him away with his clouds as Nighteye launched his weighted seals at Chisaki, knocking him back slightly. "I shall be his opponent!" Declared the pro hero as he threw even more seals at his target, "You get Mirio and Eri out of here and find Eraser Head!"

The deformed man moved surprisingly well despite his size, dodging out of the way of the projectiles before swiping at Nighteye with his four large red arms. The pro used his foresight quirk to predict his opponent's movements by a short margin, just managing to avoid his blows each time. "Slade, find sensei!" Ordered Clay, "We'll take care of things here."

"On it," said Slade as he leapt down the hole he'd spotted earlier while Clay and Midoriya regrouped near Mirio and Eri.

"Togata," said Izuku, "is it true, is your quirk really gone?"

"Not important right now," said Mirio as he held a hand over his bleeding side, "what is important is that we get Eri here away from this place."

"Right, let's get out of here," said Midoriya as he kicked a hole in the wall, "this is the way we came to get here. If we just follow it, we should be able to find our way out."

"You go on ahead and get Togata and Eri out of here," said Clay as he started walking back with his clouds swirling around him.

"But what are you going to do?" Questioned a concerned Izuku.

"Obviously I'm staying and helping Nighteye," replied Clay, "his foresight is good but he can't do any lasting damage to Chisaki. I'll back him up while you escape." Midoriya seemed to consider this idea for a moment before Eri suddenly spoke up.

"You're….hurt," said Eri suddenly as she looked at some of Mirio's blood that had gotten on her hands, "I'm….sorry…..that's enough."

"Hey now isn't the time to be-SHIT!" Clay moved his clouds towards Nighteye as Chisaki managed to find an opening and slam both of his hands downwards, causing the ground to reshape into a practical forest of spikes which came racing towards them, too fast for even the cloud wielder to pull Nighteye to safety in time. The trio could only watch as the pro hero's arm and leg were skewered while another spike tore into his side.

"NOOOOOO!" Exclaimed Izuku as he slammed his foot on the ground with the energy of One for All crackling around him far more intensely than before. Clay didn't have time to comment on this as he pulled Nighteye's injured form towards them and set his body down next to Mirio and Eri. "Take care of them, we've got this!" The big three member nodded his head as his two fellow students rocketed forward.

"How impertinent," said Chisaki as he reshaped the ground and caused more spikes to come stretching towards them at high speed. Clay avoided them by moving upwards while Midoriya had a harder time dodging side to side, giving his friend the lead. Clay fired off his own set of cloud spikes at Chisaki, forcing the villain to block them with a wall of stone. Deku then slammed his foot on the ground again, forcing the villain to use his quirk to rise up on a stone pillar to avoid the destructive impact as Clay reformed his clouds into a massive hammer which he sent plummeting downwards.

Chisaki managed to leap out of the way of the colliding pillars as he reached for the cloud wielder, only to be foiled in his attempt as his opponent moved back while also blasting a shroud of mist in his face. "Blasted insect," he remarked as he waved his hand to disperse the mist screen before looking up and realizing it hadn't just been an escape tactic. Midoriya had used his moment of distraction to leap all the way up before pushing off the ceiling, falling at high speed with a powerful heel drop maneuver.

"MANCHESTER SMASH!" Yelled Midoriya as he brought his One for All powered foot downward and cratered a large section of the ground. If Clay had to guess, his friend was somehow running at twenty percent despite the pain, but that wasn't the biggest issue right now. His attack had missed Chisaki's head by just the barest margin.

"You may be fast but in comparison to the last two," said Chisaki as he moved back and put his hand on some rubble, "Your moves are simple and easy to read!" Another group of spikes raced towards Izuku, but just as he was about to be impaled, a large cloud hand grabbed him and pulled him backwards as Clay tagged in.

"Try reading this!" Exclaimed Clay as he sent out a pair of cloud buzz saws at the Yakuza boss.

"Easily," said Chisaki as he caught them with his hands and used his quirk to make them burst apart, "Such simple attacks as that won't-GAAAH!" The man cried out in pain as the clouds he'd just torn apart had reformed into bear traps that clamped onto his arms.

"You're quirk's impressive," admitted Clay as he used his control over the traps to pull the villain up into the air, "but it looks like you can't destroy the control I have over my clouds. Tear them apart all you like, I'll just put 'em back or make something new out of the remains."

"Why are you heroes so irritating," spat Chisaki as he reached up and used his quirk to tear apart his arms to free himself before reforming them. "It might heal me, but it still hurts to tear myself apart first you bastards!" He slammed his hands on the ground again as soon as he landed, forcing Clay and Midoriya to take action as they moved out of the way of his apparently signature spike attack. Clay countered with his own set of large cloud arrows that he sent flying at his opponent. "You won't catch me off-guard like that again," declared Chisaki as he rushed forward, tearing through the cloud projectiles with his hands before charging at their wielder.

He was forced to the side, however, as he narrowly avoided a kick from Midoriya which managed to smash part of the ground. Clay acted quickly and reformed his projectiles to drive him even further back as Midoriya leapt up and off some of the rubble to attempt another strike. Chisaki tried to bring his hands to the ground again but was stopped by four, Pacman-like clouds which clamped onto his wrists. He only avoided being knocked out by using his two upper arms to block the blow, breaking them in the process while also disintegrating the clouds on his wrists to free up his movement.

'Izuku can't keep up this level of movement much longer,' thought Clay as he reformed his clouds into two spinning discs to keep Chisaki on his toes, only allowing him to heal himself as he dodged both the discs and another near miss from Midoriya. The result was another broken arm for Chisaki as Clay also managed to embed one of his discs in Chisaki's upper arm. "Miserable vermin!" Yelled the Hassaikai leader as he tore apart and healed his arms before rushing them again.

It became a pattern of combinations and near misses on both sides, with Clay working to keep their opponent from touching the ground when he could while also trying to get an opening for Midoriya. Half the time, though, he had to pull Deku away when the villain managed to dodge his attack by a hair-thin margin before swiping at him or managing to get one of his hands on the ground to use more spike attacks. It stayed like this for a couple of minutes before Clay and Midoriya regrouped with the One for All holder currently struggling to stand due to the repeated strain on his body. "I'm fed up with all of this," said Chisaki as he tore apart his arm and the clouds stuck in it before reforming them into a healed state with a mouth on his hand, "It's about time you realized the futility of your actions." He held up the hand with the new mouth as it shouted at an incredibly high volume, "Eri! Two people are about to die because of you, is that really something you want!"

"Damn dude are you trying to give us an ear ache," questioned Clay as he made a show of cleaning out his left ear, "it's a nice noisemaker you got there but it's not very truthful about our chances. This fight is already over."

"You're quite right," said Chisaki as he pointed behind them, "and she knows it." Clay and Midoriya looked back and stiffened as they noticed that Eri had returned and climbed back through the hole in the wall.

"What are you doing, go back and stay with Lemillion!" Izuku called back.

"But I…don't want….anyone else….to die," said Eri with a mixture of fear and resignation in her voice.

"That's right," said the mouth on Chisaki's hand, "do you really think either of them are capable of winning against me?"

"I d-don't," admitted Eri as she held her hands in a prayer-like gesture. Clay realized then that the villain was somehow making use of Nemoto's quirk, confession, to make her give this admission.

"Then what do you think you should do?" Questioned Chisaki.

"Come…back," answered Eri, "but…in exchange, please put everyone back the way they were!"

"That's right!" Declared Chisaki, "It's much easier to get hurt yourself than to let others get hurt for your sake." He turned to the two students then. "Can you see now that you're both acting in the cruelest way possible for her, giving her false hope? She doesn't want either of you."

"Even if that's the case," said Midoriya with gritted teeth, "we'll still save her!"

"Because that's what the needs," added Clay, "and what's more, she doesn't need a parasite like you in her life! No, what she needs right now is for someone to cover her eyes."

"Also quite right," said Chisaki, "it would be quite traumatic for her to see even more people suffer because of….what is…..AAAAAAHHH!" The Yakuza leader howled in pain as a number of spikes suddenly shot out of his right hand.

"And you need to quit your babbling now," said Clay as he clenched his fist, causing even more spikes to shoot out of Chisaki's other arm.

"What in the world, Clay what did you do?" Asked Izuku with clear surprise written all over his face.

"Before I answer that, you'd best do what I said earlier and cover Eri's eyes and maybe her ears too," said Clay, "this next part's gonna get graphic." Izuku nodded and moved over to Eri while Chisaki tore apart and reformed his arms.

"You bastard hero, how did you do that?!" Raged Chisaki as he started to advance.

"Oh, you mean this," said Clay as he flexed his fingers, causing thorny cloud vines to pop out of Chisaki's two upper arms, resulting in the Yakuza leader biting back another yell of pain, "I discreetly slipped in small amounts of my clouds during your little repair sessions every time you broke apart your arms to fix them or escape my cloud's hold. Given that your quirk only works on one form of matter at a time, I'm surprised you didn't notice how they were behaving."

"That's surprisingly clever," said Chisaki as he reached up and grabbed the arms with his other set of hands, "but it's pointless now that I know what's happening." He used his quirk to reform his arms back to their original uninjured state. "Now then, where were w-GAAAAAH!"

"I believe I was tormenting you," said Clay as he flexed his fingers again and caused more cloud thorns to emerge from Chisaki's arms, "but my memory may be a little fuzzy in that regard."

"I-Impossible," spat the villain as he fixed his arms once again, only to have curved blades sprout out of them next. "Your clouds should've separated from me once I used my quirk, so why?"

"If they behaved like normal clouds they would," explained Clay, "but I'm using my quirk to keep them attached on the inside during the rebuilding process. They're basically a part of you now."

"That can't be!" Raged Chisaki as he fixed his arms yet again only to have more spikes erupt out of them.

"As I mentioned before," said Clay, "It's clear to me now that while your quirk is powerful, you can only use it on one form of matter at a time. And, given that you need to have physical contact to use your quirk, you won't be able to reach the clouds as long as they remain buried beneath your skin."

"You miserable piece of shi-AAAAARGH!" Chisaki yelled out as his opponent made sharpened cloud blades shoot out of his hands, keeping him from touching the ground.

"So tell me, what's it like," said Clay as he waited for Chisaki to fix himself before damaging him with his clouds again, "how's it feel to be tormented because of your quirk?" He extended more blades, forcing the villain to heal himself again. "What is it like to be torn apart, put back together, and torn apart over, and over, and over again?!" He flexed his hand each time he said the word 'over', tearing new holes in the Yakuza leader's arms before waiting for him to fix himself.

"It was you who said it was easier to get hurt yourself than to let others get hurt for you right?!" Said Clay as more spikes and blades were brought forth to injure his adversary. "How's it feel when you're the one enduring the pain, torture and anguish?!" The villain yelled in pain once more as he was injured, fixed himself, then injured again. "It's only because of your quirk that I'm able to do this, so let's see how much you can actually take!" The room was filled with Chisaki's cries of agony for the next few minutes as he attempted and failed over and over again to use his quirk offensively, only to resort to healing himself instead as his injuries became too great.

"Clay, that's enough!" Said Deku as he witnessed the villain's deteriorating state, "we're supposed to be heroes, we have to bring him in alive."

"I know," said Clay as he took a deep breath, "I suppose I should go ahead and say this can all be over if you just surrender Chisaki. Or we can keep dragging it out, which, I could do all day at this point."

"Y-You wretched trash," said Chisaki between breaths as he struggled to stand back up, "I w-won't let my ambitions be stopped h-here by the likes of some kids!"

"And here I was told you were supposed to be smart," quipped Clay as he held his hand up to extend the clouds in his body once more. But just as he was about to use his quirk again, the ceiling burst open as the real Rikiya Katsukame came plummeting in along with Ryukyu, Uraraka, and Tsuyu. This turn of events would go on to reshape the whole rest of the battle.

**Alternate title for this chapter is 'Clay Gets Savage!' But as stated the battle's not over just yet, they still need to take out the Yakuza leader to make the operation successful. In the meantime, I hope you all enjoyed this latest chapter and as always feel free to leave a comment or review about what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as Chisaki pulls out one last transformation against our heroes. 'Til then.**


	9. Behold True Power!

**Behold True Power!**

**Hello everyone, sorry if this is a little late but between the last chapter of my other story, traveling and some slight computer issues there wasn't much that could be done. But with no guest reviews this week the only other thing I have to say is here it is now, the finale of the Shie Hassaikai Arc!**

Hassaikai Underground Lair

It all happened in an instant. One moment Clay was tormenting Chisaki with clouds he'd snuck into his constantly rebuilding body and the next, the ceiling burst open above them. The cloud user had stiffened at first upon seeing the body of Rikiya Katsukame until he realized who had slammed him through the ground in the first place. "It's Ryukyu, Tsuyu and Uraraka!" Said a surprised Midoriya.

"Hey it's Deku, wait," said Uraraka as she used her quirk to keep Rikiya floating, "how can you be here? You were just up there a second ago."

"There can't be two Midoriya's, so who's the other one?" Questioned Tsuyu, who currently had her tongue wrapped around Rikiya's body.

"It must be the League of Villains," said Ryukyu in her dragon form as she held down the Yakuza member, "We need too-Oh no."

"NIGHTEYE, TOGATA!" Exclaimed Uraraka as her gaze also fell on the two injured heroes near the entrance hole.

"Get them to an ambulance, quick!" exclaimed Midoriya as he rushed towards Eri, "We need too-." He was interrupted by the ground suddenly shifting and changing as a pillar shot the little horned girl into the air while a pair of branching spikes all shot out of the ground towards the heroes.

"Shit!" Exclaimed Clay as he attempted to use his quirk to stop Chisaki. But it failed as he realized the villain had used the moment of distraction caused by Rikiya crashing through the roof to heal his arms while also expelling the clouds within them.

"You disgusting heroes have screwed up all of my plans!" exclaimed Chisaki as he created a pillar beneath himself that rose into the air, catching Eri in the process.

"You're not going anywhere!" Exclaimed Clay as he rocketed up towards the rising pillar on his clouds. Midoriya came up the other side using full cowl to leap off of the debris that had begun falling from the ceiling due to the shifting of the room. The Yakuza leader turned to face them, but as he was about to use his quirk, Eri reached out and grabbed ahold of Mirio's cape which had been sent airborne by the battle. As she did so, her body let out a burst of yellow energy from her horn which caused Chisaki to actually split from his henchman as they both reverted back to their original human forms, disorienting them both for the moment.

"We won't let him have you!" Declared Clay as he created a cloud platform for Midoriya to jump off of while also sending a couple of smaller ones up to fend off the rubble between them.

"ERI!" Called the One for All holder as he stretched his hand out in midair. Amazingly, the timid girl who seemed to have no hope only moments ago, took a leap of faith off of the pillar and landed in Midoriya's arms.

"GIVE HER BACK NOW!" Raged a recovered Chisaki as he used his quirk to tear apart portions of the pillar and reshape them into giant tendrils racing towards the three of them.

"The heck you will," said Clay as he created a cloud cushion around his friend and Eri as to help him dodge around the pillars. "Midoriya, look for an opportunity to jump out of here and leave this bastard to me."

"But I can't just leave-," Izuku started to argue before another wave of pillars started coming their way.

"Our priority is to save that little girl's life," Clay called back, "you promised you wouldn't let her go this time right?" Deku's eyes widened as he remembered his promise before narrowing in determination.

"Just give me an opening," said the green-haired boy as Clay maneuvered them around even more tendrils and up towards the surface. Chisaki's desperation was clear now as he actually leapt off the pillar after them, his outstretched hand reaching towards Midoriya as Clay narrowly guided them through the twisting and quickly forming tendrils. But some of the tendrils had bent back towards them, attempting to trap the two of them there. None of them, however, were quite fast enough for what happened next.

"We will save you!" declared Midoriya as the energy of One for All flared to even more incredible heights as he pushed off of Clay's cloud with all of his might. It was far stronger than any jump he'd ever done as the air pressure wave actually demolished the stone tendrils around them and sent both Clay and the Yakuza leader flying away from the impact point. The U.A. student managed to form a tough but flexible cushion to minimize the damage from his fall before rolling off of it into a half-kneeling position. 'Now that was a jump,' he thought as he smiled, noticing that his mask and goggles had also been torn off from the air pressure wave.

"What in the world just happened," said Ryukyu as her dragon head looked around the scene and found no sign of Deku.

"That was probably a jump with his quirk at a hundred percent power," surmised Clay as he hovered next to the dragon hero, "That's the only time I've seen shockwaves that size from him."

"So where is-oh no, Chisaki," said Uraraka as everyone followed her gaze to see the villain a fair distance away staggering to his feet before using his quirk to fix his broken arm.

"Naughty girl Eri," said the Hassaikai head as he walked unsteadily through the rubble, "using your power on me of all people." He proceeded to reach down for something in the rubble.

"Not good," said Clay as he sped over towards their enemy just as he touched the body of Rikiya Katsukame.

"I need your power to realize the old man's dream!" Exclaimed the increasingly insane sounding villain as his and Rikiya's body was torn apart and reshaped once again in to that of an even larger, more grotesque creature with six red arms that stood ten feet tall if not more on two massive legs. A slightly inhuman growl sounded from the head of the monster, which had been shaped into a large version of Katsukame's mask as it revealed the upper body of the Yakuza leader in its mouth. As it spread its arms out and reached for the wall, a cloud nail jammed into the hand and knocked it away.

"I told him to leave you to me," said Clay as he released a large number of clouds from his body, throwing his usual caution with his quirk to the wind, "And I don't intend on ever letting you near that girl again."

"Meddlesome pest," growled the Chisaki hybrid as it glanced back at him before slamming one of its other hands on the ground. "BE GONE ALREADY!" Clay dodged out of the way as several stone tendrils erupted from the ground and swatted at him before countering with a half dozen large cloud nails, sticking them all where the arms began on the malformed body. But he didn't feel the skin give as Chisaki whirled around and swung at him with his elongated arms, forcing Clay to raise, lower and even jump off one of the arms before reshaping his clouds into the thickest buzz saw he could make and slamming it one of the arms.

He spun it as fast as it would go, creating sparks before finally drawing a bit of blood. "Pathetic," growled the hybrid man as he swatted the construct aside with another one of his massive hands, "this is real power!" He touched the ground again, causing more spiraling tendrils to come his way which forced the cloud wielder to increase his height in the room before reforming his clouds into drills. 'The skin's too thick for me to cut quickly, so I'll go for the actual body!' thought Clay as he sent the drills rocketing towards the body's 'head'.

The massive hands were too slow to stop the drills but the mouth was just fast enough to close as the projectiles impacted against it and began rotating at high speed. Once again, unfortunately, they weren't strong enough as Chisaki reached up with two of his new giant hands and used his quirk to disperse the clouds. "My skin is much thicker now that I've bonded with Rikiya. You pulled a nice trick earlier but now that it's rendered useless you're little more than a nuisance to me."

"You make it sound like this nuisance only has one worthwhile trick," Clay shot back as he reformed his clouds into a collar with spikes that jammed into the 'neck' of the monster that was Chisaki. "But what do you think of this: Grasping Thunder!" Bolts of electricity shot out of the clouds and into the body of the villain, producing a roar of more rage than pain as he dissolved the collar with his quirk to stop the attack. The cloud wielder used that opening to reshape his clouds into several hand-cuff like bindings that wrapped around and pulled Chisaki's six giant hands together.

The beast struggled to reach the bonds but couldn't as they were all located behind its wrists, preventing the Yakuza leader from using his quirk. "Now try a second shock!" Exclaimed Clay as he used his lightning attack yet again. While this was going on, Uraraka, Tsuyu and the others were looking on in a mixture of admiration and worry.

"He's winning," Uraraka thought aloud as she tried to struggle to her feet before collapsing back to her knees, "please tell me he's winning."

"He's surviving at the moment," replied Tsuyu, "but I don't know how much longer that'll last."

"Clay will survive if he doesn't pursue Chisaki," said the wounded Nighteye suddenly, "but he won't be able to defeat him."

"Then we need to get over there and help-guh," Ryukyu stumbled back to the ground, her own strength still drained thanks to Rikiya's quirk from earlier.

"I'm afraid none of you are in any condition to go after them," coughed Nighteye as Tsuyu continued to put pressure on the wound in his side, "once Chisaki escapes those bonds, he'll go after Eri and kill Midoriya to get to her."

"What, but that can't be-," Uraraka started to say before a massive roar filled the destroyed room.

"I've had enough of your interference you damn filthy hero!" Roared Chisaki as his arms managed to tear out of the cloud bonds that had been electrocuting him before slamming on the ground. His quirk activated then as the entire section of floor he was standing on and around him shifted and warped. The monster of a villain was lifted upwards by a large rising pillar while a mass of spikes shot out in all directions, growing even more spikes along the way. Clay was forced backwards as he narrowly avoided being impaled before getting trapped between a number of other spikes.

'Not good,' thought Clay as the spikes began to close in on him, threatening to crush him, 'I got one chance at this so here's hoping physics works the way Slade says it does.' The U.A. student wrapped his clouds around his body, directing himself towards the large hole in the ceiling as he felt the space around him shrinking little by little every second. He adjusted the density and pliability as quickly as he could and then, the hardest part, he waited. The pressure continued to build as his clouds were squeezed like a stress ball until finally the reaction he'd been waiting for occurred.

The current elastic nature of his clouds propelled him upwards as the stone pillars filled the space where he'd just been. Clay flew upwards several feet before using his quirk to call his clouds back into their signature cloud armor set as he exited to the surface to find Chisaki confronting Midoriya. The hero-in-training was understandably surprised to see his friend still standing given that he should've had a broken leg, but it did give him an opportunity. It also helped that the Hassaikai leader was currently monologuing about Eri's quirk.

"Her quirk isn't simple cancellation," said Chisaki as he stared down at Midoriya and Eri while Clay maneuvered around behind him, "she can actually rewind someone's evolution back to a time before there were quirks. What Eri truly represents, what she truly is, is CHANGE!" His massive reconfigured body began to lumber forward as Clay gathered his clouds and began building up as much electricity in them as he could. 'I still haven't gotten this move one hundred percent complete,' thought Clay as he produced even more clouds to join with the current mass in the air, 'but it's the only shot I've got right now for taking out an opponent like this in a single blow.'

"I'm the only one who knows how to use an asset like Eri!" continued Chisaki, "And with her quirk I will CURE THIS WORLD!" He hit the ground then, sending out his signature stone tendrils towards Midoriya and Eri. 'Shit it's not ready,' thought Clay as he spun the clouds at high speed, 'but it's gonna have to-huh?' He'd blinked right before sending out his attack, and in that time Midoriya had seemingly disappeared then reappeared right beneath Chisaki before kicking him with a massive amount of force.

It was so powerful, in fact, that his entire massive body was sent rocketing into the air high above the neighborhood. 'Wait a minute,' thought the U.A. student as he watched the battle in the air, 'Eri rewinds people, does that include injuries?' Apparently it did as Chisaki attempted to reform new arms and legs, only to get them blown off again by the One for All user. 'If that's true, then Midoriya can operate on one hundred percent power for as long as he needs!'

And he was using it as he smashed the villain's reformed limbs over and over in midair until he found an opening and slammed his fist into the Yakuza leader's face, knocking off his mask and sending him back to earth. Unfortunately, it was also right towards the same area he'd been launched from. "Ah nuts," Clay blurted out as he just managed to fly up and clear the area before the massive body impacted, blowing up a cloud of dust. "Now that was a show, I wonder what Midoriya thinks about-oh right he's still up there."

The U.A. student looked up just in time to see his friend falling back towards earth before forming a cushion with his clouds to catch both him and Eri. "Clay, is he?" Questioned Midoriya as One for All's energy still swirled around him.

"I think so," replied Clay as he glanced at the Hassaikai leader's unmoving form, noting the vacant expression on his face, "Kai Chisaki is beaten at last. I think you may have just won."

**Wow, this chapter turned out shorter than expected but hopefully it was intense enough to be entertaining for everyone. Now a serious question for everyone: should I go ahead and kill off Nighteye, or leave him in an injured state that will prevent him from doing anymore hero work? I honestly have no idea how everyone else felt about his death in the show. Just let me know the usual way with comments and reviews. Also, let me know what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as our heroes deal with the aftermath of the battle. 'Til then.**


	10. Hope and Dread for the Future

**Hope and Dread for the Future**

**Hello everyone and welcome to the final chapters of the Hideout Raid Arc. No guest review questions this time around, so let's head into the story!**

Underground Lair of the Shie Hassaikai

'The battle up there is getting rather intense?' thought Chronostasis as he removed his mask to reveal a man with long white hair that ended in a few arrow points. 'Kai shouldn't lose, he's fought plenty of ferocious opponents.' At least that's what the Yakuza member wanted to think. But as he did, flashes of the one known as Lemillion went through his mind, causing doubts to form as he realized that the heroes sent after them were quite ferocious in their own way.

A stirring near his feet told him that Aizawa was starting to regain some movement. 'I hit him with the short hand, so he won't regain full movement for an hour. But it's already been several minutes since the confrontation started.' The sound of fighting intensified again as the dust from the roof was shaken off by the rumbling from above. It would continue on like this for a bit longer as Chrono waited for his leader to appear. There was even a point when all of the rumbling stopped, bringing a bit of hope to the Expendable member.

But fate had other plans as the rumbling of battle resumed. By this point, Aizawa was attempting to crawl away, inching little by little towards the door that led out of the room. 'Even if Master Chisaki loses,' he finally thought, 'I can still take the completed product with me and find a way to get it produced. A sample of the Erasure Hero's blood would also be worth having to investigate for future projects.' The Yakuza member proceeded to pull out a tanto-like knife, hesitating for just a moment as he made his final decision.

"For the Hassaikai," said Chronostasis, "and for Kai!" He gripped the knife with both hands as he readied to plunge it into Eraser Head's back where his heart would be. But a figure descended from the ceiling suddenly, swinging on a cable attached to a gauntlet on his arm. Chrono only had time to raise his arm to protect his head as the hero slammed both feet into him, sending him crashing to the floor and the knife sliding away into the shadows.

The new arrival dropped down completely next to Eraser Head, crouching protectively as he reeled the cable back into his gauntlet and scanned the room for any other possible enemies before his eyes settled back on the only other person in the room. "Kurono, better known as the villain Chronostasis," he said, "not that I expect you too, but the rest of your buddies have been either arrested or are being beat down as we speak. So why don't you make this easy on all of us and come quietly?"

"You'll never defeat THE HASSAIKAI!" exclaimed Chronostasis as he sent one of the grey arrows from his head at the hero, only for it to veer off course after hitting his skin.

"I already know the limitations of your quirk," said the hero as he managed to grab ahold of the arrow before it could retract, "as for mine, well, my hero name is Dark Matter so you try and figure out what that means."

"You…bastard…hero!" exclaimed Chrono as he struck Dark Matter with his short hand arrow from his head over and over again in an attempt to free his long hand. But it was like he was hitting a solid stone wall with all the weight of a boulder. No matter how hard he pulled or how many times he struck his opponent, the hero didn't even flinch. "You won't bring me in-!"

His outburst was cut short with the latest yank of his head as his opponent's weight seemed to suddenly decrease drastically until he was as light as a baseball. And like a baseball, he was rocketing right towards the villain. Chronostasis attempted to dodge the incoming attack, but given his opponent still had a hold of his long hand arrow that was attached and reeling back into his head, there was little he could do. Right before Dark Matter struck, his weight seemed to increase again as he kneed his opponent in the face with all the force of a swinging sack of bricks. The villain was almost certain he lost a tooth as he crumpled to the floor, unconscious.

"Geez, these fanatical follower types are always such a pain," said Slade as he pulled out some specialized hand cuffs he'd received before the raid commenced and locked the Yakuza member's hands behind his back. He quickly tossed him next to the door before moving over to check on Aizawa. "Hey Sensei, how's the feeling in your limbs right now?"

"I've been better," replied the 1A homeroom teacher as Slade pulled him up off the ground and slung his arm over his shoulder. Just as he was standing up, the door to the room opened, causing the hero and student to both go on guard until they saw it was a pair of police officers followed by a pretty injured Amajiki supporting a likely unconscious Mirio on his left side.

"Dark Matter, Eraser Head," said Amajiki, remembering at the last moment to use their hero names, "it looks like you've got things more or less in hand here."

"Kurono is out cold," said the U. A. student as he indicated the unconscious man, "Sensei is still recovering from the effects of that guy's quirk though. What about you and Lemillion?"

"We'll live," replied Amajiki, "I'm more concerned about what Mirio will do now that his quirk is gone." Slade was about to answer to that when his frog quirked classmate suddenly came bounding up to them from the hallway outside the door.

"You're all okay," observed Tsuyu as she stopped next to Sun Eater and Lemillion.

"And what about things on your end Froppy?" Asked Slade, "I notice the rumbling's finally stopped."

"It has," replied Tsuyu, "but you need to bring sensei up quick to help Deku and Clay!" Even with her frog features usually making her mood unreadable, it was obvious to Slade how worried she was, and with good reason.

In front of the Hassaikai Compound

Clay wasn't often lost for words, especially not after witnessing the grand finale that was All Might's United States of Smash against All for One. But even then he'd only been able to witness it from a screen several city blocks away. What had just happened before his very eyes, though, was still nothing short of amazing. Midoriya had managed to achieve and to some extent control One for All full cowling at a hundred percent power. He hadn't done it alone, of course, it was all thanks to Eri's power that he wasn't in pieces right now from using his own quirk at such an output.

The one who was in pieces, though, was Kai Chisaki as half of his body was currently sticking out of what could be considered the 'mouth' of the abomination he'd created by fusing himself with Rikiya Katsukame. 'Hopefully he stays down,' thought Clay as he turned his attention back to his friend who was still glowing with the energy of One for All while Eri's body was shining with its own yellow energy. An energy which seemed to be getting stronger. "Eri, are you alrigh-GAAAAAH!" Midoriya got his answer in the form of the little girl's quirk intensifying as the yellow light glowed even brighter.

"Midoriya, get her to switch that off or get her away from you now!" exclaimed Clay as he recalled how her powers worked. She was able to rewind people and other living things, even to the point of them disappearing completely. Now that Izuku wasn't exerting himself using his destructive quirk anymore, the only thing to rewind was him in his current state.

A sudden stirring caught the cloud user's attention then as he turned and saw a semi-conscious Chisaki somehow moving one of the massive arms of his fused body towards Eri and Deku. Thinking quickly, Clay sent two of his clouds out, cutting Mirio's cape off of his friend while using the other cloud to fling the girl right towards the monster's hand. "You want her quirk so bad then take it!" Exclaimed Cirrus as the horned girl came into contact with the limb.

As before, the reaction was fairly instantaneous as the entire body dissolved, or rather, separated back into the bodies of Overhaul and Rikiya. Clay reformed his clouds to catch Eri and bring her back to the ground as another voice rang out from overhead. "Gun Head martial arts!" exclaimed Uraraka as she came floating in from the side and grabbed Overhaul's wrists, pulling them both behind his back before floating him down to the ground in a submission hold.

"Your timing couldn't have been any better," remarked Clay as he set Eri down gently on the ground, "and sorry about flinging you through the air like that little o-shit it's still not stopping!" If nothing else her quirk seemed to have only grown stronger as the light intensified.

"What's the situation Uravity?" Questioned Ryukyu in her dragon form as she dragged herself out of the hole, followed by Tsuyu and Slade carrying Aizawa while Amajiki supported Mirio.

"Overhaul and Katsukame are both down," reported Uraraka, "Clay and Midoriya are safe too, but I'm not sure what's happening with Eri."

"Her quirk's in overdrive right now," explained Clay as they continued to witness the girl's glowing ability, "Not a single person can touch her while it's active or they'll be rewound back to nothing."

"Dark Matter, Froppy," said Eraser Head weakly, still currently unable to move his body. The two U. A. students understood his intentions, though, and held his head up so he had a direct line of sight. A familiar glow came to his eyes as his hair stood on end for a moment, the sign that his quirk was activating. As it did, the light surrounding Eri was extinguished as the girl collapsed onto the ground, unconscious.

"Eri!" exclaimed Midoriya as he rushed over and picked the sleeping girl up, checking her over for injuries. Everyone else breathed a sigh of relief at the scene as realization slowly crept into each of their minds. It was finally over, they'd won. But it had all come at a cost.

Nearby Hospital

"'This is a different future than the one I saw,'" Clay repeated to himself in his mind. Those had been Nighteye's parting words before he was put in an ambulance and rushed to the nearest trauma center. The rest of the heroes, students and police officers who had received any injuries were also sent there. Anyone else who was still able had assisted in rounding up the remaining Hassaikai members and loading them into armored police vans bound for prison.

Clay and Slade had been some of the few who hadn't been hit by Katsukame's quirk, so they assisted in checking the damage around the area with Nejire Hado and a few others. Afterwards, they'd also gone to the hospital in order to get Slade checked over, given he'd taken something of a beating from Twice's clone of Rappa. He and Izuku wound up with separate doctors checking them over, meaning the two were done at different times. This meant Clay somehow wound up being the one to fetch Midoriya while Slade went on ahead. But they weren't walking alone for long as, to their surprise, Aizawa was already back up, having apparently only needed ten stitches for whatever injuries he'd sustained during the raid.

"So, uh, how's everyone else doing?" Asked Midoriya as the three of them were led down the hallway by Aizawa.

"Kirishima received multiple lacerations and bruises from his fight against Rappa, but he'll be fine once it all heals up," replied Aizawa, "Amajiki has a cracked a bone in his face, but that's the only major injury he has and it won't leave a scar. Fat Gum suffered some broken bones in a few places himself, but he seems relatively well otherwise. The knife wound Rock Lock received didn't hit anything vital, so he'll just need some time for it to heal up."

"I'm glad to hear they're all okay," said Midoriya with an obvious hint of relief in his voice, "and what about Eri?"

"She developed something of a fever after I shut her quirk down," replied Aizawa, "she's still sleeping, but the doctors have decided to quarantine her."

"I take it there's still a lot we don't know about her quirk then," surmised Clay.

"All we know is what we saw when she was on Midoriya's back," replied Eraser Head, "she appears unable to control her rewinding quirk."

"So we can't even see her right now," said Izuku as he lowered his head slightly dejectedly.

"The only reason you were able to touch her in the first place, at least according to Clay, is because you were continually damaging your body with your quirk," said Aizawa, "there aren't a lot of people who have a condition like that. For the moment, I'm the only one who'd be able to stop her quirk if it went out of control again."

"Fortunately for you, her quirk only appears to affect people," said Clay, "that's why I was able to get her away from you with my clouds."

"Yeah, if you two hadn't stepped in, I'm not entirely sure what could've happened," admitted Midoriya, "so thanks for that."

"It will also make training her rather difficult," said Aizawa, "a quirk that rewinds people is not a simple matter, and that's before you factor in her current emotional state. Painful as it is, the most logical course of action right now is to keep her quarantined for the time being."

"It also means we won't be able to use it now," said Slade who was currently leaning against the wall outside of an automatic door.

"Oh Slade, how are you feeling?" Asked a mildly surprised Izuku. Clay had told him about the beating he'd taken, but he knew his friend was a stubborn one when it came to staying down.

"I'm fine physically," replied Slade, "but my mood is about to be shot to pieces." Midoriya could only tilt his head in confusion at that statement. "You'll see." The group proceeded to pass through the opening doors then. To the surprise of at least one of them, All Might was there along with Bubble Girl, Centipeder and Recovery Girl.

"All Might, and Recovery Girl is here too," observed the Green-haired boy.

"I called them," said Bubble Girl with a hollow tone to her voice as tears began to well up in her eyes, "I thought it was best…because Sir was…always talking about All Might." She couldn't continue as she began to break down in sobs before the gathered heroes and students. Centipeder was quick to hand her a handkerchief as a surgeon stepped forward to give them the news.

"We've done all we can," he said, "but he lost too much blood and his injuries were too extensive. It's amazing he's even remained alive this long."

"And in his exhausted state, there's little that I could do with my quirk either," said Recovery Girl in a somber tone as realization struck each one of them on who was being discussed.

"It is unlikely Sir Nighteye will live through the day," said the Surgeon. A sudden groan drew their attention then as All Might rushed over to his former sidekick.

"All Might," said Nighteye weakly through the oxygen masked over his mouth. He was hooked up to at least half a dozen hoses and wires around his wounds, all meant to monitor his vitals and deliver him the necessary emergency fluids. Despite his condition, though, the man somehow managed to add a bit of humor to his next line. "So you finally managed to come down and visit me."

"I don't really have anything to say to that," admitted All Might with a forced smile, "I put you through so much unnecessary pain after all."

"Nighteye," said Midoriya as he also rushed to his bedside, "you have to keep fighting, you have to do your best to live!"

"You don't need…to apologize," said the former sidekick to All Might, "I never….resented you. All I ever wanted…..was for you to be…..happy. If choosing to fight…..was truly your wish-."

"You should fight too," said All Might as tears started to form in his eyes, "give me a chance to atone for what I did back then and everything else up until now."

"There's no need…for you to atone," breathed Nighteye, "I was the one who…..wanted to change your future. I kept looking…for a way where…you wouldn't die. But to no…avail. It wasn't until I saw Midoriya today…..that I finally believed it was possible. Perhaps it has something to do with…..energy….and a strong vision with no room for doubt. I'm sure it wasn't just Midoriya…but the energy of everyone…believing strongly in it that brought everything together."

Nighteye paused to take a ragged breath before he continued. "I thought it was the result…of that energy…converging on Midoriya…and bringing about the future when it was…..released. The future really is uncertain…and it was you, Midoriya, that changed my thinking. That alone….is enough for me….my only true regret is-."

"SIR!" exclaimed Mirio in hospital clothing and bandages as he came limping into the room and over to his mentor's bedside. "You can't, please don't die! You have to live!"

"Mirio," said All Might's former sidekick as he took in the sight of his protégé, "you went through a lot because of me. If only…..I'd been a little-."

"I was only able to become strong because you taught me!" exclaimed Mirio as tears spilled forth from his eyes. "I'm able to live the way I am now because of you! So please, live, so that you can keep teaching me!"

"Forgive me…..Mirio," said Nighteye, "when I first had you brought to me…it was merely as a vessel for…..One for All. But you followed me….believed in me…..before I knew it, you'd become…..my greatest pride." He reached up and felt his disciple's cheek as his sclera turned black while his irises became purple, the sign of his foresight quirk activating. "You'll be….a fine hero…finer than anyone else. That is the only future….that should remain…unchanged. So remember to smile….after all…a society without humor or cheer…has no bright…..future."

The light left his eyes then but the smile remained on his face. The former sidekick and pro hero Nighteye passed away that day, having given his life to save one little girl from the clutches of a madman. But his hope for a bright future would continue to live on as those who remained vowed to press on and make it a reality.

**And so the time of another one of the greats has come to an end, but they leave a legacy which aims for a brighter future. Now, depressing tone aside, I hope you all enjoyed this latest chapter and be sure to leave a comment or review about what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as our heroes contemplate the aftermath of the raid. 'Til then.**


	11. Worn Spirits

**Worn Spirits**

**And hello everyone welcome to the latest chapter of Hailstorm Vol. 2! No guest reviews to answer this week so as they say, on with the show!**

Hospital: Back Alley

"DAMN IT ALL!" Yelled Clay as he kicked a trash can so hard it left a dent. "A little faster, why couldn't you have been a little faster?!" He kicked another trash can over in his rage before slamming his fist into the side of the dumpster, not caring how much it hurt. "All that time and training and what does it amount to if you can't pull one person to safety in time?!" His only answer was the ring of the metal dumpster as he continued to throw punches at it until his exhaustion finally caught up with him.

"Well you seem to be using your time quite productively," said Slade as he walked out of the side door of the hospital, "You somehow managed to go most of the raid without receiving little more than cuts and bruises. Let's not give the doctors any more work than they already have."

"This is just some bloody knuckles," Said Clay dismissively, "a little disinfectant and some bandages will fix them right up. And we might be saying the same thing about Nighteye if I'd managed to move him out of the way in time."

"You can't blame yourself for that," said Slade, "we all went in expecting to fight for our lives and even die if necessary. Do you really think Sir is unhappy about the outcome?"

"He'd do it all again in a flash, yeah I know," said Clay as he leaned against the wall, still not facing his friend, "and it's all part of the job. But Slade I let one of Midoriya's heroes die, all because I got distracted for a second. If I'd moved just a bit sooner then maybe-."

"Then you might've saved him that go around but there's no guarantee he wouldn't have died some other way," said Slade, "I'm sure you recall the old wisdom that heroes aren't heroes because they never make mistakes. The man could see the future and he still somehow managed to get into a situation that even he wasn't able to get out of. Even your Uncle made a mistake today and I had to save him, something you told me to do I might add."

"And I'm beyond grateful that you did," said Clay as he pushed off the wall and faced his friend, "I just-do you think Midoriya is gonna put the blame on me for this?"

"We both know Izuku better than that," replied Slade with his arms crossed, "if he's blaming anyone it's himself. Not a single person blames you for Nighteye losing his life, least of all the man himself."

"So you say," said Clay with a sigh, "but whatever the case I guess we'd better get back in there before we're missed."

"Why do you think I came out here in the first place," said Slade as he patted his friend on the back and directed him inside, "Tsuyu, being surprisingly nosy, happened to see you skulking off and sent me after you."

"She really is a sweet girl under all that bluntness," commented Clay as they approached the lobby where the news was playing. Currently, there was a report about an attack on a police convoy by, the League of Villains! And the one they attacked had been carrying both Chisaki and the finished product of anti-quirk bullets.

"Looks like they weren't really allies after all," said Slade as they walked up to the other occupants of the room: Aizawa, Recovery Girl and a mortified looking Izuku who was watching the broadcast very intently.

"They've been running this same news report since yesterday," said Recovery Girl.

"It isn't something any of you should feel responsible for," said Aizawa, getting the student's attention. "The police are working on it right now, so don't feel the need to worry."

"But what should we be doing then?" Questioned Izuku.

"You've all done more than enough for today," said Aizawa, "I've already been asked to tell you that all students are to return to the school. Togata will be staying a bit longer for observation, but everyone else has already been healed by Recovery Girl. They should be here shortly."

"I'll remain here a bit longer to heal a few more of the patients," said Recovery Girl, "though before I go." The old lady reached out and kissed Clay's hand for a few seconds, healing his hurt knuckles. "Don't be too hard on yourself. Sometimes even your absolute best isn't enough, I should know." Clay gave a simple nod to this before Midoriya spoke up.

"But shouldn't we stay until Eri wakes up?" He asked.

"There's nothing more we can do for her now other than leaving her to the doctors," replied their teacher in his usual blunt tone.

"I know it's just," Izuku let his sentence hang in the air before changing the subject, "can I at least go see Togata before we leave?" Aizawa never got an answer out as Midoriya set his belongings aside and rushed back towards where Togata was currently roomed.

"I guess we'd better go too," said Slade as he grabbed his friend's back pack while Clay grabbed his costume case. The two rushed after Izuku and found him just as he opened the door.

"It's Midoriya," he said as he opened the door for the three of them. The sight which greeted the three was, a bit unexpected.

"Hey guys!" greeted Togata in his usual enthusiastic tone while holding his legs in the air performing what was known as the 'bicycle' exercise. "Good morning Midoriya, Clay and Slade! It looks like I'm the only one stuck here for another to be monitored, and while I've got all this energy too! Damn it!"

'Well he's, lively,' was the thought on everyone's mind as Midoriya approached the bed first.

"Togata, I thought you-?" The green-haired boy started to say.

"I know how it must look," said the leader of U.A.'s big three as his tone actually turned half serious, "I've lost both my quirk and my mentor in the same day. By all accounts I shouldn't be in a laughing mood." He flipped back up to a sitting position then. "He might not have given off that impression with any of you, but Sir actually smiled quite a lot when he was working with me. And his dying wish was for me to smile, so that's what I'm going to do, as well as become a fine hero someday. Besides, Eri will probably feel sad if she sees me looking gloomy."

"You kept protecting her even after you lost your quirk," said Midoriya almost too quietly for them to hear as he clenched his fist, "Maybe if you'd been the successor then-."

"Now you just stop that line of thought right there," said Clay, "if anyone's to blame for what happened to Nighteye it's-."

"I don't blame either of you," said Mirio, interrupting them, "and even if I was this successor you're talking about, I don't need a powerful quirk. And I don't see why either of you are acting as dejected as you are right now. From where I'm sitting you both did a splendid job, Deku and Cirrus the heroes." This statement brought a few tears to Izuku's eyes as Clay averted his gaze, thinking on Mirio's attitude.

"I almost forgot to mention," said Slade, "I happened to have a talk with Eraser Head about Eri's quirk before I came to find you Clay. If Eri does learn to properly control her quirk, she may be able to reset Togata to the point where he had his quirk."

"And even if that doesn't work, I'll just keep trying different things until I find something that does," said Mirio as he clenched his fist in determination, "I'll have to take a little time off of U.A. until then, but even with things the way they are now I'm more than okay. After all, I have the vision Nighteye told me about with his foresight, so let's all keep smiling!" He lightly tapped Midoriya's head with his fist to get his point across. It seemed to have the desired effect as the green-haired boy actually managed to cheer up a bit.

"I'll make it back to U.A., as Lemillion, the one who'll save a million people," Said Togata.

"Well in that case, we'll all be waiting," said Clay as he formed a small smile of his own.

U.A. Heights Alliance: That Night

It took a bit longer to get back to the school than any of them expected. As soon as the group of students were discharged, they'd been picked up by the police and taken to the station for a debriefing of the Shie Hassaikai incident. Between the questioning and the mass of paperwork, the sun had pretty much set well before they finally arrived. A fact that Tsuyu commented on as the group of work study students all marched towards the doors to the dorms.

But none of them quite expected the welcome they received upon entering the main room. "They're back!" exclaimed Kaminari and Mineta as the rest of Class 1A practically charged the door, throwing out one question after another.

"We say the news," said Momo as she gave Slade a welcome back hug, "you went through a lot out there."

"Are you sure you're alright," Questioned Jirou as she checked Clay over for any signs of injuries before getting interrupted by Mina throwing her arms around the cloud user, surprising them both. Hagakure did much the same with Tsuyu and Uraraka.

"I was worried sick about you guys!" exclaimed Mina as the earphone jack girl worked to pry her off Clay.

"Anyway we were all worried," said Sato as he held up a delicious looking dessert, "would you like some chocolate cake?"

"How do you guys keep getting wrapped up in crazy stuff like that?!" exclaimed Kaminari.

"I'm simply glad to see they're all okay," commented Shoji from one of his mouths.

"Alright everyone, calm down!" exclaimed Iida as he waved for everyone to back off, "I know you were all worried but we need to give them some space and console them quietly. You saw what happened on the news, so treat your classmates properly. If nothing else, their spirits are assuredly worn down." This seemed to have an effect as the rest of the class backed up a bit, looking a little sheepish about the fact that they'd basically jumped all over their classmates upon entering.

Funnily enough, Midoriya actually spoke up about the situation first. "Thanks a lot Iida," he said, "but it's really alright."

"Well in that case if I may," said the engine leg teen as he pushed his glasses up with his finger, "I was extremely, extremely worried about you guys!" He was practically yelling this while shaking the green-haired boy back and forth. 'And he's being the most violent of all,' thought the class more or less collectively.

"I'll go make some lavender tea, it'll ease everyone's spirits," chimed Momo as she headed back into the dorm kitchen.

"I do gotta ask," said Jirou, "I know you're not 'okay' okay Clay. But are you at least holding up?"

"I've been better," admitted the cloud user, "as you know it's not the first time I had to watch someone die. But it was the first time I've ever had to watch a hero die."

"Well I don't know if it'll help all that much," said Mina as she produced Koda's rabbit from seemingly nowhere, "but would anyone like to hold Koda's bunny for a bit?"

"Oh me, me!" said Uraraka excitedly as she, Tsuyu and Hagakure all gathered around the pink girl. The others smiled in spite of themselves as their classmates continued to consul them for a bit longer.

Later That Evening: Clay's Dorm Room

Their classmates had been a fair help in easing the interns minds, but they'd also sent them to bed rather promptly, knowing that it'd been a trying day for all of them. And in truth, Clay was tired to a pretty fair degree as far as his body went. But his mind was still running on full tilt as the events of the day ran through his thoughts over and over again. It had wound up with the cloud wielder resorting to playing his electric keyboard on low volume as he always did when something was troubling him.

'This is the job sometimes,' he thought as his Uncle's and the words of the other heroes resonated in his head. "Rest in peace Nighteye," he finally said as he switched to a keyboard tune similar to the melody of 'Piano Man', "We'll take care of Eri for you." It would be a long time before he actually fell asleep as he played his ode to the fallen hero through the night. And come the next morning, there was a solemn vow that he would get better.

**And thus our little intermission comes to an end with this surprisingly short chapter as we begin to roll into the school festival arc. And as we move into that arc I find myself in a little situation requiring a bit of input from you all, namely, which girl should Clay ultimately wind up with. I know this is a long series and there's the possibility we'll encounter a new girl who'll steal the show and our cloud wielder's heart, but right now I want to hear what you all think. So as always leave your answers in your comments and reviews along with what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as Clay and Slade demonstrate some of their lesser known talents in preparation for the school festival. 'Til then.**


	12. The Value of a Hobby

**The Value of a Hobby**

**Hello everyone and welcome to the beginning of the short but still fun U.A. festival arc. No guest reviews this week so that means we can get right into the story!**

U.A: Class 1A

The days seemed to go by in a blur at the hero training school and before anyone had even really registered it, September was over along with any traces of summer as October began to bring its familiar cold temperatures. Not that Clay really noticed given the recent happenings such as going to Nighteye's funeral with All Might and the other heroes, finishing up their work studies at the hero agencies and staying after school for extra lessons to insure they were at least close to caught up with everyone. Though that last one was getting to be less of a problem as the hero agencies and the school decided it was best to wait a bit and see how things turned out after such a dangerous mission.

Centipeder was now leading the Nighteye Agency and awaited Togata's return somewhat excitedly. On the brighter side of things, Eri had finally regained consciousness and her fever had gone down. The horn on her head had also decreased in size with the lessening of her fever, meaning the stored energy she'd had was likely used up. But the doctor's still insisted on caution, saying her quirk could go out of control at any time and thus, no visitors could be allowed as of yet.

Even if all of that hadn't been weighing on Clay's mind, however, he could still say one thing definitively as Ectoplasm finished writing the latest equation for them to solve. He still hated math, and finding integrals was one of the reasons. And this particular question seemed to stump most of the class as well, even giving pause to Slade, Momo and Midoriya, the three smartest students in class. Clay couldn't agree with Tokoyami more on this particular one, it was a question of the darkness.

A darkness that Izuku thought he was ready to face as he raised his hand. "107/14!" He declared.

"Incorrect," responded Ectoplasm immediately before turning his attention to Slade and Momo who'd raised their hands at the same time.

"107/28!" The two declared as soon as they were called upon.

"That is correct," affirmed Ectoplasm. 'I think my brain's gonna short circuit like Kaminari's today,' the cloud wielder thought with a sigh as the class turned to the next page. 'Still strange that Midoriya missed the question though. Guess I'll ask him about it as soon as class is done.' At least that had been the plan, until a certain alien girl drew the class's attention as soon as the teacher was gone.

"Hey guys, check this out!" Said Mina happily as she began, break dancing? Rather skillfully Clay noted as he and everyone else gathered around.

"My, she must've practiced quite extensively to put on such a performance," said Aoyama.

"But why is she wearing shorts under her ski-GAAAAH!" The annoying grape boy, Mineta, was thankfully silenced by Hagakure pounding on his head with her invisible hands.

"When are you going to learn to stop being such a creep!" she exclaimed.

"You know come to think of it," said Midoriya as he jotted a few things down in his notebook, "Ashido's dance skills could prove quite effective in close combat."

"You know it," said Mina as a mischievous smirk crossed her features, "Clay, help me, DEMONSTRATE!" The cloud boy just barely reacted in time as he leapt over his classmate's leg before backing away to avoid her next assault.

"Mina what the heck?!" Questioned Clay as he dodged, sidestepped and dived right over the pink girl's next few attacks, "We're in the classroom, save the sparring for the gym."

"Fight, fight, fight, fight," said Slade sarcastically until Momo jabbed him with her elbow. "Sorry I meant, dance, dance, dance, dance."

"You are not helping," remarked Clay as he blocked the next set of kick attacks from his classmate before pushing back. Amazingly, Mina actually used the momentum to flip over and land perfectly on both feet.

"Tada! And that's the value of being a good dancer," she said with her trademark Ashido grin.

"A bit more advanced warning next time," said Clay as he dusted off his school uniform.

"Ah come on, ya need to learn to be spontaneous every now and then," replied Mina as she continued to move back and forth to a rhythm that only she could hear.

"Maybe I should learn some dance moves," said Midoriya. Whether or not his statement was meant to be heard, no one knew. But Mina heard it alright.

"Alright then, why don't you show me what you got," said Mina, her more mischievous smile returning as she stretched her arms.

"Uh yeah, please teach me," said Izuku nervously.

"Just a word of warning," said Clay, "She's surprisingly strict about this sort of stuff." This didn't help his friend's nervousness as Mina started with a simple two step move where one moved forward and back, left and right while swinging their arms. The main thing was simply to stay loose throughout the whole move. Which Midoriya and Aoyama were anything but as they either jerked from side to side or did a poor imitation of the robot.

"This kind of reminds me of how Sato uses his baking skills," noted Kaminari, "it's a hobby that also helps him with his heroing stuff. Come to think of it, don't you have a hobby like that Jirou?"

"How should I know?" Asked Jirou, wondering where he was going with this.

"Come on, your entire room looks like a recording studio," Kaminari pointed out, "even I can tell that music is basically your whole life after seeing it."

"Oh will you drop it you moron," said Jirou, a bit more forcefully this time.

"But you could really do something with that passion," said Kaminari, "Start a jam session or some-ah." He was stopped midsentence by one of Jirou's earphone jacks coming up just short of jabbing his face.

"Just forget what you saw in there," she says dangerously before walking back to her seat in the classroom.

"W-what in the world was that all about," said Kaminari as he glanced back and forth in confusion.

"She's a little touchy about her hobbies," said Slade as he walked by, "try not to mention it in public." All other conversation ceased then as everyone rushed to their seat just before Aizawa entered the room, still wrapped in his trademark yellow sleeping bag.

"I imagine you're all well aware," said Aizawa after taking his position behind the podium, "the school festival is coming."

"NORMAL SCHOOL STUFF!" Cheered a majority of the class. And for once, Clay visibly relaxed at the thought. 'I'm usually not one for those sorts of things, but after the time we've had recently maybe something like this won't be so bad,' he thought.

"Are we even sure this is a good idea Mister Aizawa," said Kirishima suddenly as he stood up.

"Hey are you trying to ruin this Kirishima," whispered Kaminari.

"But think about it for a second," argued the red-haired boy, "villains are everywhere right now."

"A reasonable point," said Aizawa, "but you need to take into account that there are other students who need this time. While the hero course gets the sports festival, the general studies, business and support course's time to shine is during the festival. Obviously it doesn't grab as much attention but every student in those courses still looks forward to it. With the implementation of the dorm system and other recent events, many of the students are more than a little stressed out due to the happenings with the hero course."

"I guess when you look at it that way, it's a bit unfair to cancel it," said a slightly somber Kirishima as he sat back down.

"That's correct," said Aizawa, "so it's still going to be put on and with luck, everyone will be able to enjoy it. Though it will only be open to U.A. students and staff this year as opposed to past festivals, with a few exceptions. But even if your class isn't the focus this time you still need to do your part. Now I don't care what you decide to do, just get it done toda-." Their sensei had been leaning on the wall and sliding down it the more he talked until finally, he'd fallen asleep.

"And he's out," said Clay, voicing everyone else's thoughts, "It's Christmas dinner all over again." Fortunately, Iida and Momo both stepped up to the teacher's podium to take over.

"Alright, as class representative it is my duty to facilitate the process from this point on!" Exclaimed Iida in his usual loud authoritative voice. "Now our first order of business is a quick brainstorming session so if anyone has any ideas raise your hand now." And that's when chaos erupted as nearly every hand in the class went up, followed by a chorus of 'pick me pick me', 'I've got an idea', and a few who were yelling their ideas without even waiting to be called on. "Alright one at a time, please!"

Iida then proceeded to call on each student in turn who gave out their ideas. And there were a lot of them. Maid café, mochi shop, funhouse, arm wrestling, grapery, disco, the expected hero quiz from Midoriya, frog song, a petting zoo, there were plenty of ideas to go around. Even some of the more reserved students had ideas like Todoroki's suggestion of a Soba shop. Clay was admittedly curious when he heard Tokoyami's suggestion of a mad banquet of darkness.

Eventually, all of the ideas were collected and written on the board. The list was then quickly narrowed down after cutting out anything deemed inappropriate, impossible or just plain confusing. But even then there were still too many. "If I have to wear a giant mascot suit of any kind, I'm not doing it," Clay said offhandedly.

"I don't see what the big deal is," said Slade, "your Uncle is the master of the walking sleeping bag."

"If you want me walking around in one I'll be dead asleep on the floor too," Clay pointed out. He would've said more but the discussion on what to do for the festival had gotten louder and louder until even Iida couldn't keep order. And just as it seemed like it would devolve into yelling, the class bell rang.

"Well that was a highly unproductive discussion," said Aizawa who was somehow out of his sleeping bag and next to the door in an instant, "decide what you'll do by tomorrow morning or we'll go with my own idea: a public lecture." He said it with such menace in his voice that it almost sounded like he was threatening torture, which this could almost pass for.

U.A. Class 1A: Extra Classes Time

"So do you guys have any ideas for what we should do for the school festival," asked Uraraka as she and the rest of the raid team students worked on their school work. Aizawa had already given them the lesson and now was one of the rare moments where he left the room while they were working on the class assignment.

"We could do a pool extravaganza," suggested Slade, "though I might make a few people mad if we did."

"Wow, are you hiding a secret swimming talent?" Questioned Uraraka with a curious tilt of her head.

"He means the game 'Pool'," explained Clay, "ya know, knock some balls into holes with long sticks Pool?"

"The one good thing about these study sessions is that Mineta's not here," quipped Tsuyu, "imagine the field day he would've had with that statement?"

"Good work on bagging him during class earlier by the way," said Slade. Tsuyu gave a smug smile, or the best she could of one, and a quick ribbit.

"I wish we could do something hero-related," said Midoriya as he scratched his head in thought, "but that doesn't really narrow it down much."

"And it seems a little redundant given that we learn Heroing 101 every day," commented Clay, "though I'd almost pay to see Ectoplasm's reaction to Slade walking around dressed as him."

"He has already done so, actually," said Tokoyami, speaking his first words since their lesson had started, "with it now being October and Halloween fast approaching, he decided to ask the man himself about the costume he'd been working on. Ectoplasm sensei's face was as stoic as ever throughout their whole conversation."

"Are you kidding me," said Clay, "when were you going to tell me this? If I'd known you were working on a costume I'd-." The sound of the door opening silenced all further conversation as Aizawa walked back in.

"Alright everyone," he said, "Get ready to turn your papers in. Oh, and Clay and Midoriya, I just got word from the hospital concerning Eri."

"Is she alright?!" Midoriya almost leapt out of his seat as Clay found himself listening much more intently.

"She's doing fine physically, don't worry," said their teacher, "but she's been wanting to see the both of you and Togata. It's been her only request since she woke up so we've decided to oblige her at least this once."

"Thank you sir!" Said Izuku with a bow, "I promise we won't cause any trouble while we're there."

"I know you won't," said Aizawa, "because I'll be there with you in case her quirk goes out of control again. So be sure you're on your best behavior."

"Don't have to worry about that," said Clay, "at least this one time, I'm gonna try to be good with a kid."

The Next Day: Local Hospital

As it turned out, the reports had been rather accurate about Eri's condition. Her horn was pretty much a bump on her head now and whatever energy she had before was pretty much gone, so the chances of her quirk going out of control were relatively slim. It didn't mean precautions weren't taken as Aizawa stood by the door with a nurse and the doctor, keeping an eye on the girl and the three U.A. students. But they didn't let that bother them as Mirio happily cut and peeled several apple slices into the shape of little rabbits.

But Eri was a little more concerned with something else at the moment as she finally spoke. "I've been thinking," she said, "even when I had a fever, I couldn't help but remember everything you'd done for me, how you saved my life. But I only know Lemillion's name, I don't know what to call either of you. What are your names?"

"Oh, I'm Izuku Midoriya," replied the green-haired boy, "and my hero name is Deku."

"Clay Cero," answered the cloud wielder, "I go by Cirrus while on hero duty."

"Hero name?" Repeated Eri, "what is that exactly?"

"You could say it's like a nickname of sorts," explained Midoriya. Clay thought about pointing out that it was more like a work name, but he figured they'd keep it simple this time around.

"Deku, Cirrus, Lemillion," Eri tried each name out, "and then there was the man with the glasses. All of you got hurt because of me, pretty badly." Clay frowned a bit at that. The girl was still blaming herself for what happened. It'd been a wise move not telling her about Nighteye's passing. "I'm so sorry, it was all my fault. If you hadn't been protecting me Lemillion, you'd still have your power-."

Mirio made the first move then, putting a reassuring hand on her head. "Eri," he said, "Not a single one of us thinks what happened is your fault, I guarantee it. Instead we're all thinking 'thank goodness Eri is okay.' So you don't need to apologize. Everyone fought their hardest because we wanted to see you smile."

Eri seemed to understand somewhat as Mirio sat back down, before she started pulling on her face. "This sounds silly when I say it out loud," she said, "but I think I forgot how smiling feels." 'I wonder who we have to blame for that,' thought Clay as he hid his clenched fist, before opening his hand back up and forming a small shape with his clouds. The next thing Eri knew, a grey cat made out of Clay's clouds was perched on her head and tugging at the corners of her mouth.

"That's an easy enough thing to fix," said Clay after calming himself a bit, "you just need to find something that makes you feel warm and fuzzy on the inside again." He then moved the cat down to her lap as the girl looked at it curiously.

"Nice trick," said Mirio, "I should've thought of bringing an animal along."

"Cats are loved by just about everyone," said Clay, "even by sensei back there. By the way, Persia acked another hairball in the kitchen again."

"She's just expressing her displeasure at not being home," said Aizawa in his usual monotone.

"Actually that gives me an idea," said Midoriya as he got up and jogged over to their teacher, "do you think it'd be possible for Eri to leave the hospital for a day Mr. Aizawa?"

"It's not completely out of the question," admitted Clay's Uncle.

"Then I might have an idea that'll bring her spirits up," said Izuku excitedly.

"And what might that be?" Questioned Aizawa, actually seeming to express a bit of interest in this particular topic.

"She should come with us to the U.A. school Festival," declared Midoriya.

"Oh that's the best idea ever!" Cheered Togata as he turned back to Eri.

"What's a festival?" Asked Eri as she was scratching the ears of the cloud cat. It didn't feel furry, per se, but its cushiony body was soft to the touch, like running one's hand through a strange rug or carpet.

"It's a place where you can have all kinds of fun!" exclaimed Togata, "The festival is put on by the students at our school and they put together all kinds of things for the rest of the class to have fun with. There's all kinds of games, performances, and food like candy apples!"

"Candy apples?" Repeated Eri, clearly never having heard of the sweet treat.

"They make them by dipping an apple into this creamy, sugary stuff to make it taste even sweeter than it already is," explained Mirio.

"You can make them, even sweeter?" Said Eri, sounding actually interested.

"Well it looks like it's at least worth talking it over with the principle," said Aizawa as he pulled out his phone and began typing on it.

"Thank you Sir!" Said Midoriya as he turned back to the blue-haired girl excitedly. "What do you think Eri, does it sound fun?"

"Well a minute ago," said Eri, "I was sad because I didn't know your name or what to do. If I'm being honest, more than anything, I want to be friends with all of the people who helped me."

"Then that settles it," said Mirio, "we just need to convince the principal now. I'm already on a break from school, so I can definitely hang out with you before our festival date."

"Date?" Said Eri, again tilting her head in confusion as Clay directed the cloud cat onto her shoulder.

"It's when two people who like each other spend time tog-AAH!" Mirio was interrupted as the cloud cat leapt onto his face, digging its 'claws' into his head.

"You'd best be a bit more specific in that explanation," said Clay, "she'll get the wrong idea if you don't tell her the difference between a 'date' and just 'hanging out'."

"Maybe we should call it a day," said Midoriya with a sweat drop.

That Night: U.A. Heights Alliance

The funny thing about plans sometimes is, on occasion they tend to change without one's say so. In this instance, Clay had just returned to the dorm with everyone else and, after a quick detour to get a drink from the fridge, had planned to head upstairs and get some rest. That's when things hit a slight snag. "Hey, uh Clay," said Jirou as she suddenly came walking into view, "do you, have time to talk?"

"I suppose so," replied the U.A. student as he turned to his friend, "is something bothering you?"

"It'd be easier to explain in my room," said Jirou as she tapped her earphone jacks together. Clay knew that nervous tick of hers, but he was at a loss for why she'd be embarrassed. So with a shrug the cloud wielder followed his friend up to her sound studio styled room and sat down at what had become something of his customary spot on the keyboard bench.

"Alright," he said, "what's got you so nervous that you need to talk about it here?"

"Well we, managed to pick what the class is gonna do for the festival," explained Jirou, "a music and dance show."

"It beats the ever living out of a public lecture," said Clay, "but why's that make you nervous?"

"I sort of agreed to do the music half," said Jirou, "it's gonna be a live performance in front of the whole school."

"Are you telling me you get, stage fright?" Said Clay with a raised eyebrow, "You've got no problem playing for us during our jam sessions or for some of the other girls in the class. And given some of the actual life or death situations we've been in this seems like it should be a cake walk."

"I know, it's just," Jirou sighed, "music's always been a part of my life, and even though I want to be a hero it's still my favorite hobby. But today, everyone told me I can make people smile with it."

"You make us smile," said Clay, "some of the most fun I have outside of school is jamming out with you, Slade and Momo."

"But I can't use it for hero work," said Jirou, "Sato bakes sweets because his quirk needs sugar and Kota can talk to animals so it only makes sense that he'd take care of them. Mina's dancing keeps her athletic and she's even used it a few times to help her fight. But how would I stop a villain with a nice guitar solo?"

"What villain am I gonna stop with a keyboard riff," countered Clay, "we've dedicated ourselves to being heroes, but that doesn't mean every single facet of what we do has to relate to it. In fact I think it's actually a little unhealthy to center the entirety of one's life around one thing. Look at All Might, he dedicated his entire life to being the number one hero and now that he's retired, he's doing what he can here at U.A. while reading books titled 'Teaching for Dummies' and the like."

"Yes I did see that," said Jirou with a slight giggle, "It's still weird to think he could go from buff to skinny like that."

"And now he's got tons of free time and no idea what to do with it outside of school," said Clay, "so he's probably picking up lots of hobbies now. You see the thing about hobbies is they don't have to be useful, they're for you and whoever you decide to share them with. As you know I play the keyboard because it helps me relax more than anything and the assistance with my concentration is just a bonus."

"It's a stress reliever," realized Jirou, "which is kind of what we're going for in all of this. And they do say music is good for the soul."

"And this whole festival is supposed to be fun anyway," Clay pointed out, "hero stuff doesn't have to be involved. In fact, you could say this is one of the few times where we let the heroic stuff take a day off."

"When you put it like that it sounds," Jirou tried to think of the right words.

"Like a perfect time to show off a hobby," offered Clay, "and you already know where to find a good keyboarder if you need one."

"Yeah, I appreciate it Clay," said Jirou as she hit her face a couple of times before turning back to him with a smile, "alright then. We'd best get some rest now because if we're gonna make a music and dance show happen, we've got a lot of work to do!" That would prove to be an understatement.

**The festival the festival it's time for the festival! Or at least it's time to get to work on it for our young heroes-in-training. And speaking of time, I hope you all had a good one reading this chapter and feel free to leave a comment or review about what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as preparations for the Class 1A song and dance show begin! 'Til then.**


	13. The Class 1A Band Crew

**The Class 1A Band Crew**

**Welcome everyone to the latest, and possibly shortest, chapter of Hailstorm Vol. 2! No guest reviews to answer this week, so let's just head right on into the story!**

U.A.: Class 1A Extra Class Time

'So we've got exactly one month to pull off this song and dance show,' mused Clay as he finished up one of the latest assignments. 'That's more than enough time for someone who's had practice on an instrument to prepare, but the real kicker is gonna be who in class actually has musical experience besides me, Slade, Jirou and Momo. And Momo's more of an emergency band member at the moment as we both play piano/keyboard.'

"You actually still thinking that hard about the school festival," said Slade, breaking him from his musings, "that's a bit unusual for you."

"Well 'usually'," replied Clay, "but usually we're not part of the main show. I was always the guy who moved stuff around with his clouds, which is still probably gonna be part of the performance depending on whether or not we want to use effects. And then of course there's coming up with the music itself which'll affect what types of instruments we use and what kind of sound equipment we'll need to procure. And that's not even beginning to mention-holy shit I'm mumbling aren't I?"

"At least you caught yourself," said Slade, "Midoriya would've been through a laundry list and a half by now."

"I don't mumble that quickly," said the green-haired boy, "and besides Clay's right. A three person band is doable but we're looking to get the whole class to participate and it'd put too much on just the three of you, not to mention a percussion section is more or less an absolute requirement for just about any type of band performance. Then there's the logistics of making the dance costumes, pinning down what we can and can't do on stage, the types of effects we can create using both equipment and quirks-."

"And I'm stopping you now because that's already a laundry list right there," said Slade.

"Oh no I mumbled while trying to say I don't mumble!" Realized Midoriya as he grabbed his head.

"Ah don't worry about it Deku," said Uraraka with a friendly smile, "We've all had the school festival on our minds ever since it was decided what we'd be doing."

"And besides," added Tsuyu, "The rest of the class is brainstorming stuff right now, so we may as well focus on catching up with our studies."

"That's reasonable I suppose," Said Slade as he pulled out the next text book for their lesson, "why don't we see what we-oh great, it's English Lit." 'And that means it's time for me to step up to the plate again,' thought Clay with a sigh as he also pulled out his own text book and got to work. One of the few things that hadn't changed since their arrival in U.A., Slade and the others still needed a teensy bit of help with his native language.

Later That Evening: U. A. Heights Alliance

"So you managed to figure out a fair bit I see," observed Clay as he and the rest of the work study students listened to the plan the class had come up with so far. Thankfully it was all pretty straight-forward as their brains were a bit fried after finally catching up with the rest of the class academically.

"We're going with new rave type club rock music," said Tsuyu, noting how much of a mouthful it was to say.

"Jirou on bass and Clay on keyboard are obvious choices in this case," said Kirishima, "And Slade can shred on lead or backup guitar. But I'm still not sure I'm hearing right when you say Bakugou's on the drums."

"It is a bit unexpected," admitted Uraraka as she turned the image over in her head.

"You all got a problem with it?!" Exclaimed Bakugou in his usual shouting voice. The three U.A. students shook their heads at that, saying no to his question.

"Relax," said Clay, "It's just amazing to everyone that you have a skill in something that doesn't involve blowing stuff up or potential murder weapons."

"Bite me rain cloud," said Bakugou as he crossed his arms in a huff.

"Well its one problem solved at least," said Tsuyu, "but we still have the problem of who's going to sing the all-important vocal part."

"I thought Jirou was singing," said Clay and Uraraka at the same time before laughing a bit at the coincidence.

"W-well I," Jirou stuttered out nervously. Fortunately, or unfortunately in this case, she was saved by Mineta jumping in.

"If it's singing you want then I can do it," declared the Grape Boy, "It'll make me way more popular."

"I might could perform as a singing disco ball," added Aoyama.

"Well I don't know how to play an instrument," said Kirishima, "but you better believe I can sing." He then proceeded to pick up the mike that had been set up with some of the sound equipment and began singing, elevator jazz? The music was good but he sounded more like a patron at a karaoke place.

"I don't think that's the genre we're going for," commented Uraraka with a sweat drop. Right genre or no, it was still better than what came next: Mineta's unholy screeching into the microphone that was about one step above nails on a chalkboard. Slade was quick to shut him up with a chop to the back of the head. Then there was Aoyama's which was, better, than the last but only by a slim margin. He could only hit Falsetto, out of tune.

"Yeah I think Ochako and Clay are onto something," said Hagakure as she turned to Jirou, "I mean your singing is great whenever you teach us in your room."

"Hey, you'll make everyone's expectations too high-," Jirou started to say before Clay handed Hagakure the mike and she set it in front of Jirou.

"Just give it a shot," urged Hagakure as she moved the mike closer.

"It'll be fine Jirou," said Kirishima, "we're all rooting for you so give it a whirl." The rocker girl still looked a bit unsure, but steeled her nerves as she took hold of the mike and breathed for a moment to calm her nerves. Then, she began to sing.

"You know everyone," she began slowly, "wants to sparkle, like the stars in the, niiiiight skyyyyyy. In this wondrous place, filled with all our dreamsss. I've been waiting for, the tiiiiiime." As she finished the short piece, she looked back up to the rest of the class nervously. "So, how'd I do?"

"Maybe the slightest bit sharp on one note," Remarked Clay, "other than that, well, what'd you guys think?"

"MY EARS ARE SO HAPPY!" Exclaimed most of the girls in the class as everyone else cheered.

"I believe the decision is unanimous on this one," said Iida with a smile.

"Uh, great, moving along then," said Jirou, somehow still embarrassed about her musical talent. "Anyway, we need guitars now, two more to be precise."

"Oh I can, it looks so cool to play an instrument!" Exclaimed Kaminari happily.

"Don't you dare put your hand up unless you're absolutely gonna kill it dimwit," threatened Bakugou. Kaminari was about to reply to that until the sound of strumming was heard in the main room.

"Hate to say it but I think I'll be taking the lead on this one," said Slade as he shredded a couple of notes on the yellow instrument. "But if you think you can learn fast, then we can make it work."

"Well I can sort of play guitar," said a less sure Kaminari until the sound of more shredding was heard, from Tokoyami of all people as he played a purple guitar.

"You can play?" Said a surprised Shoji, "Why didn't you ever mention that?"

"To my shame I was once bested by the F chord," admitted Tokoyami, "I heard it brings down many a beginner, but eventually I picked the aux up again."

"Well let's see what you brought with it," said Slade as he carved out a rock and roll riff on his guitar. Tokoyami, while still outwardly stoic, responded with an even more complex riff. It was answered in kind by a string of notes from the density shifter's guitar which was matched again by the shadow quirk wielder. Before long the two were matching strumming speeds for a solid minute, then halting suddenly.

"REVELRY IN THE DARK!" The two guitarist said as they clasped hands.

"Uh, what just happened?" Asked Kirishima after witnessing the little duel.

"I think they just became guitar bros," remarked Clay. Everyone else shrugged before breaking into smaller groups to figure out who would be in the band, on the dance crew, and part of the effects team. It took them 'til one in the morning to get it all finalized, but at last, Class 1A's song and dance crew was fully assembled.

The Next Day: Gym Gamma

"Do you really think it was necessary to come here this early in the morning," questioned Clay as he plugged a couple of aux cables into his keyboard, "I mean it's not the first time I've had an early morning after a long night, but this still seems excessive for a little performance."

"You know this 'little' performance is supposed to be stress-relief for everyone, right." Replied Slade, "and besides, are you telling me you're not excited to play that keyboard in front of a large audience?"

"'Excited' isn't quite the word I'd use," Said Clay, "I'm always up for playing this little instrument but the audience size I perform for is five people or less in most cases. Not that I much care what the rest of the school thinks of our class. At this point they don't like us for any number of reasons and I honestly don't feel like keeping up with any of them or apologizing for stuff outside of our control."

"Then let's put our feelings into this jam," said Slade as he plugged in his own guitar and checked to make sure the sound was coming out of the speaker, "alright, we're set so, let's start this off!" The density shifter began with one massive note on his instrument, then two more as Clay came in with a fast-paced keyboard tune. From that point on they hardly slowed their pace at all, putting all their skill into this little warm-up. Clay in all honesty had to do his best not to sing the lyrics out loud as he didn't technically have a vocal part in the upcoming performance, for now, but he still couldn't resist saying a couple lines under his breath.

In another minute, the final note was struck as they ended the tune, allowing silence to reign over the gym once more. "Well," said Slade in between breaths, "at least we know the equipment works." Clay was about to respond to that until the sound of some applause was heard behind them. Turning around, they noted that the rest of Class 1A had entered. 'Whoops, seems we had a little audience to this test,' thought the cloud user.

"That was China Groove wasn't it," observed Jirou, impressed the two were able to pull off a tune like that.

"Well, yeah it was," replied the two as they rubbed the back of their heads sheepishly.

"Hey!" Yelled Bakugou in his usual angry tone, "we're supposed to be practicing together! Are you trying to show the rest of us up or something!"

"Ah relax, this was a warm up," assured Clay, "so, what say we get to practicing." The class collectively agreed to that as they got to work setting up the gym for what would hopefully be a great show. But in the shadows outside the gym sat a figure wearing visor-like shades with a scowl on his face. 'A song and dance show,' he thought irritably, 'can this class be any fuller of themselves?' His annoyance caused his quirk to activate slightly before he calmed himself and made the objects he absorbed retreat back into him. 'Just you wait Class 1A, you're little show isn't gonna overshadow us.'

**And so it seems there are those whose dislike of Class 1A will be more, problematic, than expected. Hopefully what wasn't problematic was the length of this chapter as it's pretty much a prelude to hustle and bustle that'll be our heroes lives setting things up for the next chapter or so. Until then, feel free to leave a comment or review about what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as our heroes prepare and Clay helps give a little tour of the school to Eri. 'Til then.**


	14. Eri's Backstage Tour

**Eri's Backstage Tour**

**And here we are again with another chapter of Hailstorm Vol. 2! No guest reviews this week so onto the story!**

Day Time: U.A. Height's Alliance

Saturday was a day one usually reserved for relaxing or taking care of some non-work related business. But for Class 1A, including Todoroki and Bakugou who somehow managed not to have provisional license training today, it was time for practice and preparation. Each of the groups they'd come up with for the show were either getting their routine down or working on some way to make the show even better. In the case of Clay and Slade, they were hard at work with the rest of the band to make their music selection sound as outstanding as possible. Though some of them were a bit louder about it than others.

"YEAH!" Exclaimed Bakugou as he banged out his part on the drums, "We're practicing to kill!"

"Why is it always murder, death, kill with this guy," Clay had to yell for Slade to hear him over the band's sound.

"I don't know, maybe it was his first words as a baby," Slade answered back.

"Hey less talking and more jamming!" exclaimed Bakugou.

"Alright," said Jirou as she rocked out on her own guitar, "keep the rhythm tight around this section and, good!" The band hit the final ending note of that section as a few of the members worked to catch their breath.

"Hey Dense Shift," roared Bakugou in his 'inside' voice, "you were late on the fifth again!"

"I only seemed late because you rushed the long note like last time," Slade pointed out, "you're supposed to hold it for another half a beat."

"I was perfectly in time!" Bakugou shot back while pointing the drumsticks in Slade's direction.

"Actually you did rush that section," Jirou informed the explosion quirk user, "we had to pick up the tempo to catch up with you for a few moments before you settled down."

"Told ya," said Slade with a smug look on his face until Jirou turned to him.

"And you need to bring your part out a bit more in the second verse," Explained the Rocker Girl, "Lengthen the notes here and there to make it more distinctive."

"Right," said Slade in a somewhat deflated tone.

"And Clay," continued Jirou as she moved onto the next band member, "you missed a couple of notes during the transition. Try to keep it tight around there if you can."

"Already marking the trouble spots," responded the Cloud User as he took a pencil to the sheet music in front of him.

"Finally, Tokoyami," said the Earphone Jack girl, "Try not to slow down on the more complex sections. Getting the right notes is key but you can't sound like you're playing catch up."

"I shall intensify my training so that my notes match all of yours," affirmed the Dark Shadow quirk user in his usual serious voice.

"Now then, which part should we play next," thought Jirou aloud before the front door opened to reveal both the Dance and Effects teams.

"Hey guys!" Sang Mina happily, "We're taking a break for teatime, so why not give those fingers a rest for a bit?"

"Keep your tea!" Bakugou half-shouted, "We've got music to play over here!"

"Actually, we also need to borrow Clay for a bit," Said Mirio Togata of U.A.'s big three as he came popping into view, "we brought along a little guest." Said guest sheepishly poked her head out from behind Mirio's leg.

"Why is the blond one screaming so much?" Asked Eri, "Is he mad at something?"

"Oh you can ignore him," Clay reassured her as he got up from the keyboard and approached the little blue-haired girl, "Anger is pretty much his default emotion. He probably curses the sun for rising in the morning."

"It never rises when I feel like getting up, it's always when I'm still sleepy!" Bakugou said.

"Anyway, welcome to U.A.," said the Cloud Wielder as he knelt in front of the girl, "What do you think of it so far?"

"I…don't really know," said Eri with a hand to her chin, "I guess this place is nice."

"Well this is just the beginning," said Mirio as he lightly ruffled her hair, "because Me, Midoriya and Clay are gonna give you a grand tour of the whole school!"

"Well then we'd best get the tour bus ready," said Clay as he produced some clouds and formed a miniature, roofless bus, "climb aboard." The shy girl looked unsure for a moment as she tested her foot on the cloud a couple of times before climbing in. She gave a cute 'eep' as the cloud proceeded to lift off the floor and hover just below shoulder height of the other students.

"Alright Eri," said Midoriya, "Let's go see the school that makes heroes!"

Main Halls of U.A.

"Today may be a weekend day," explained Togata as the group of four walked down the hallway, with Eri hovering on the cloud, "but since everyone lives in the dorms and the festival is fast approaching, a lot of students are taking the time to prepare for it." And indeed the halls were buzzing with activity as students from first to third year all moved with a purpose back and forth through the hallways, busying themselves with every task from moving supplies to hanging banners and other decorations.

"Oh hey Togata," said a blond-haired third year from the business course who was accompanied by another student with a large horn growing out of his head. Who freaked out a bit upon seeing the small girl accompanying them.

"What, don't tell me you're on temporary leave because of a kid?!" Exclaimed the Horned Student. Togata simply smiled at that, which only made his friend panic more.

"Relax," said Clay as he signaled to the girl that it was okay to raise her head out of the cloud bus a little, "these two are clearly not related if you take a close enough look."

"So is she your kid then?" Questioned the Horned Student as he turned his attention to Clay.

"Alas, it is a complicated matter," answered Clay in a more dramatic tone, "Some years ago I did indeed connect with a bright girl who could also fly through the air free as a bird. But one day she said she wished to become a hero, and that she had a new responsibility to tend to. It was only recently that I found her again, my dear Hado."

"WHAAAAATTTT!" Exclaimed Midoriya and the horned student, "You never told me this Clay!"

"Of course I didn't," said Clay as he started laughing before putting his hands over Eri's ears, "because it's all bullshit!"

"Hah, that's a good one!" Said Mirio with a smile, "You really would've done well at Nighteye's agency."

"I saw an opportunity and it was too good to pass up," said Clay as he took his hands off Eri's ears.

"YOU NEARLY GAVE ME A HEART ATTACK!" Exclaimed Izuku and the horned student. Clay rubbed his head apologetically, still not able to keep the smile off his face.

"Well all jokes aside," said the blond student as he held out a flyer for the group to look at, "This year's Class 1 is gonna be amazing, so make sure you stop by."

"Wow, this is a really good flyer," praised Midoriya as he read the contents about a special lecture.

"I just hope the subject matter is at least entertaining," commented Clay as he also took a flyer. The group then proceeded to head out onto the school grounds where numerous stands were being erected by the student body. Clay had taken the liberty of turning the cloud bus into a little car for the fun of it as they proceeded on their way.

"Even though there's still a month left before the festival starts," explained Midoriya to Eri, "everyone's still super busy."

"It's no surprise given that they all want to do even better than last year," said Mirio, "they're trying to make it 'Plus Ultra' good." Clay was about to explain that little tidbit to Eri before pulling the girl behind him with his clouds to avoid bumping into a silver dragon head.

"Oh sorry about that," said the Class 1B student, TetsuTetsu as he repositioned the prop, "Hey, aren't you two from Class 1A?"

"Oh really," said the annoying voice of Monoma as he popped out from behind his classmate, "what's 1A doing idling around here? No work to do?"

"Are you alright Eri?" Questioned Midoriya as Clay allowed her to float closer to him.

"I thought that head was the person that fell from the sky for a moment," replied Eri.

"Oh, you mean Ryukyu," said the green-haired boy happily.

"Hey, are you ignoring me," asked Monoma, "you know I heard that Class 1A is doing some kind of concert or whatever. Do you really think that'll cut it? Because this time, 1B's performance is gonna be way more amazing than yours!"

"If it's you getting a one-sided beat down I'll pay to see it," remarked Clay.

"It's Romeo and Juliet/The Prisoner of Azkaban/The Return of the King," said Monoma, "A completely original script written by all of us. It'll be a super fantastic fantasy play!"

"I could probably find a better story than that on a Fan Fiction website," Said Clay dryly, "come to think of it I probably already did at one point."

"So you say!" Monoma shot back, "but you had better prepare your handkerchiefs to wipe away the tears you'll cry once you're blown away by us! AHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Could you close Eri's eyes for a moment Midoriya," requested Clay.

"I mean sure," Said the One for All Holder, "but the last time you asked me to do that you-oh gosh!" The moment the little girl's vision was obstructed Clay, imitating Kendo's technique, chopped Monoma on the side of the neck, rendering him more or less unconscious.

"Sorry about him," said Tetsu as another member of his class dragged Monoma away, "Kendo's usually around to reel him in, so he's a bit nastier than usual."

"Those two almost always seem to come in a set," noted Midoriya as he looked around for the orange-haired girl, "where is she right now?"

"She was entered against her will into the beauty pageant," replied the 1B member with the headband.

"Anyway, let's both do our best 1A," said Tetsu as he and his classmates walked off.

"Sorry you had to experience one of the bad parts of U.A. so suddenly," apologized Mirio. Fortunately, the little girl hadn't seemed to notice Monoma's bad behavior.

"I wonder why Mr. Aizawa didn't say anything about a beauty pageant." Midoriya questioned out loud.

"'There's no logical reason to be competing over who looks better'," Clay said in his best imitation of his Uncle, "'Looks won't help you in a fight against villains.'"

"Yeah I guess he would say that, wouldn't he," admitted Midoriya as he rubbed the back of his head.

"I personally think there's some debate to be had on that topic myself," Commented the Cloud User, "but what can ya do?"

"Speaking of the pageant, a certain someone's taken great interest in it this year," said Mirio with a smile.

"Who would that be?" Questioned Midoriya with a tilt of his head.

"Why last year's runner-up of course, follow me," replied Mirio as he led them to the school's equipment room.

Beauty Pageant Dressing Room

'Somehow we both should've guessed,' thought Clay as he found himself looking up at none other than Nejire Hado, who was currently floating in the air courtesy of her quirk. She was also garbed in a teal dress with a sleeveless white top that did little to hide her shoulders or other, endowments.

"Hey, Eri's here!" Cheered the female member of the big three as she floated even closer to the group, "it's great to see her out of the hospital, but why here, tell me, tell me!"

"W-wait," said Midoriya as Nejire came quite close to invading their personal space, causing him to avert his gaze, "you were just l-last year's r-runner up with your q-quirk and bo-bo-bo-."

"Exceptional body proportions," said Clay as he forcibly turned Midoriya's head towards Nejire before speaking to him, "which if you want to be the number one hero, you'll need to get used to talking to both guys and girls. So look sharp and accept it, accept those sources of radiant beauty right before your eyes!" Midoriya was only able to do so for about two seconds before he fainted with a nose bleed.

"Yeah, Nejire tends to get reactions like that from other people, not sure why," said Mirio.

"Well the reason I lose every year is because of this other girl who's really amazing," explained Nejire, "Support Course Class 3-G's Bibimi Kenranzaki is the running Beauty Pageant Champion."

"You get beat out by a girl with an annoying laugh and foot long eyelashes?" Questioned Clay with a confused tilt of his head, "They must be scoring something besides beauty if that's really the case."

"Oh, have you met her?" Questioned Mirio in mild curiosity.

"Bumped into her once when I was asking Hatsume about upgrading my costume," replied Clay with a shrug, "or to be more precise, her foot long eyelashes bumped into me. Thankfully one of Hatsume's little babies decided to explode and scared her off."

"This year's pageant is scary," said Tamaki as he stepped out from behind one of the clothing racks, "Kendo, who gained a lot of secret fans from being in a commercial, is also competing. Just thinking about performing in front of so many people is….ow….just the thought is making….my stomach hurt!" The third member of U.A.'s big three was on his knees then as his anxiety took over once again.

"Well the only reason I got into it in the first place is because Yuyu here asked me too," explained Nejire as she floated over to a girl with very short pink hair, "but it's actually been a lot of fun, and I don't want to lose this year, it's my last chance!" The girl was practically beaming as she smiled at the thought of it all.

"You can definitely do it," assured Mirio with a clenched fist while Clay and Midoriya, who'd managed to regain consciousness, gave her a thumbs up in support. Eri simply looked on in wonder.

Later: Development Studio

Apparently all the talk about the Support Course was enough to make Eri curious. So the group made that their next stop as they walked into a buzzing workshop that had at least a dozen different projects going at once. It was expectedly noisy, but Eri was too intrigued by all the activity to remember to cover her ears as she looked from atop the now cloud pony she was riding upon. "All the grades work together this time of year to put on an exhibition of their best works!" Explained Mirio, having to raise his voice a bit over the sound of tools being used.

"This part of the festival makes a splash every year," added Midoriya as he marveled at all of the equipment and machinery being built.

"It's Slade's favorite part to see as well," said Clay, "though I'm not sure if he likes comparing notes or arguing the physics more."

"Either way it's the Support Course's time to shine!" Sang Hatsume as she appeared seemingly out of nowhere.

"Ah, Hatsume when did-whoa," Midoriya's surprise was quickly turned into awe as he and the group gazed on the large robotic suit with accordion-like arms and a domed cockpit.

"This is my super cute baby #202," said Hatsume as she held her arms out wide in presentation.

"That's awesome," said Midoriya, "but you seem to have a little dirt on your, uh-."

"Your everywhere," Clay finished for his friend. He was all for politeness but sometimes you just had to come out and tell it like it was.

"Oh this," said Hatsume as she rubbed her head with a smile on her face, "with everything going on bathing just seems like a waste of time right now."

"It'll seem like a good investment once you realize you're trapped with your own body odor in that cockpit," Clay pointed out.

"Well the sports festival was a place for the hero course to show off," explained Mei, not seeming to notice the cloud user's comment, "but now we've got the spotlight! And even more companies will come to look at my babies, so I gotta raise 'em right where they don't embarrass me!" The inventor patted her robot lovingly before turning back to them. "By the way, how did the iron soles and canisters work out? If you've got any more requests, let me know right away."

"We will, thank-," Izuku started to say before he and the rest of the group noticed a slight rumbling from Hatsume's robot suit.

"I think it's time to go," commented Clay dryly as the robot's domed head exploded. The group beat a hasty retreat out of the studio as several support course members were calling for water, again.

Lunch Rush's Eatery

"Well that's about it as far as the main parts of the school go," said Midoriya as the group all sat down for lunch, with Eri currently sipping on a little juice box. "What do you think of it all?"

"I'm not really sure," said Eri with her still downcast face, "there are a lot of different people working hard on all these, projects. I guess I'm wondering how it'll all turn out."

"Most people call that, getting excited," said a refined voice from one table over. It seems they'd picked the same time to eat lunch as their principal, Nezu, and their teacher Midnight.

"Mr. Principal and Ms. Midnight!" exclaimed a surprised Midoriya as the bear/mouse hybrid in a suit gnawed on his food in a similar manner to the animal that he resembled.

"Should I find it fitting or ironic that he's eating a whole wheel of cheese," Clay whispered to his friends as the Principal finished his meal and dabbed his mouth with a napkin.

"I'm also quite excited about the school festival," said Nezu, "it's a thrill to see so many students working hard and having fun in order to make something that people will be able to enjoy!"

"Try telling that to the police," said Midnight with a sigh as she took a bite of her own food.

"Now there's no need to worry about that Kayama," assured the rodent Principal as he leapt down from his chair and headed towards the cafeteria exit, "anyway, it's my hope that you'll all be able to enjoy it to your heart's content."

"Is there something we should be concerned about?" Clay asked as soon as Nezu was out of earshot.

"It seems the Police Chief came and paid us a visit," explained Midnight, "I can't tell you all the details, but the Principal worked very hard to keep the festival on this year. Security is stronger than ever before and if an alarm of any kind, even a false alarm, sounds then we've agreed to cancel it and evacuate everyone."

"They're really being strict about this," noted Midoriya.

"You shouldn't worry too much," assured Midnight, "we've been beefing up the defenses all around the campus. We've even let Hound Dog loose around the vicinity of the school."

"I kind of feel better knowing he's out there, but at the same time a little concerned," commented Clay.

"Oh and I should mention, Class 1A's little concert is making something of a stir in the faculty lounge too!" Said Midnight with a wink as she picked up her tray and began to leave. "Do your best at living your youth now!"

"Yes mam!" Said Midoriya more or less automatically, but with a good deal of enthusiasm in his voice.

"What are all of you doing in the show?" Asked Eri with a tilt of her head.

"Well I'm not actually in the concert," said Mirio, "so I'll be there to show you around the festival when the time comes."

"Me and Clay are performing a dance with music," said Midoriya, "Clay is gonna be on the keyboard and I'll be with the dance team. We're both going to do our best to make it fun for you, so come and watch!" He said this with such a genuine smile that Clay hated to inform him that their time was up.

"Our break's about over," Clay pointed out as he and Midoriya stood up, "but I hope you're looking forward to the festival now."

"Don't count me out," said Mirio with his fist raised in the air, "I'm looking forward to your show too! So look for us in the crowd!" The two classmates gave a nod before getting back to work. The next week would prove to be pretty smooth sailing, until one afternoon.

One Week Later: Class 1A

"Midoriya," said Mina as she put a hand on his shoulder. For whatever reason she was dressed like a member of the Men in Black, which Clay found ironic given her alien appearance. "You're, fired from the dance team." For obvious reasons, the green-haired boy was stunned into silence as he stared back with a slack-jawed look on his face. "At least that's the line I'd like to use, but what's really happening, is you've been drafted by the effects team!"

The smiling girl tossed her black suit jacket and sunglasses off then as her usual Ashido grin returned to her face. "But I already told Eri I'd be dancing," said Izuku as he retained the same gaping look on his face.

"The Effects Team was looking for a way to make Aoyama reach the whole gymnasium with his disco-ball trick," explained Mina, "the idea was to have him hauled up on a rope and moved along the ceiling. But since we don't have the type of large-scale equipment for that, the team decided to have a power-type user like you move him by hand."

"The idea is for me to go from a dancer to a disco ball at the beginning of the performance," continued Aoyama, "It's really the perfect job for a sparkling person like me, so I'd appreciate your help."

"But you can still keep Midoriya as part of the dance team for at least a little bit, right?" Clay asked, knowing the boy wanted to keep his word to Eri.

"We might be able to come up with something," said Kirishima as he clasped his hands and bowed, "we're sorry if we're wasting some of the practicing you've done, but we really need your help on this."

"Well if it's to help make the show better, and if Eri doesn't end up feeling like I lied to her, then I'll do it." Said Midoriya with a nod.

"Thanks man you're the best!" Exclaimed Kirishima as he gave the boy a one-armed hug.

That Night: U.A. Heights Alliance

"For the last time I am not rushing," said Slade as he sat on the couch and tuned his guitar.

"You are too you dense idiot! Bakugou shot back, "I'm the one setting the pace so I know you're rushing!"

"It's not setting the pace when you can't even keep up a consistent arrangement," Slade replied calmly, "You need to pick a pace and stick with it if you want the rest of the band to follow." Bakugou snarled as he and Slade continued to argue back and forth while Clay simply sighed as he went over the notes from today's session.

"You seem well-suited to teaching," complimented Momo as Jirou came walking by, "I can hear Tokoyami's improvement and even Clay and Slade are learning new ways to play music."

"It's not all that amazing when you have some actual practiced musicians," Jirou replied humbly as she sniffed the air, "anyway, what kind of tea are you brewing today? It smells pretty good."

"Oh you can already tell it's special," smiled Momo as she set her cup down and picked up the green box, "this is a very elusive tea that my mother sent me, Gold Tips Imperial! Everyone should give it a taste!"

"That's a hard pass on my end," Said Clay, "I can down just about any drinkable liquid in an emergency, but since it's not I'll stick to my usual."

"Your loss," said Jirou as she sat down next to the cloud user, "by the way, what's up with Midoriya over there?" The green-haired boy was currently scrolling through numerous pictures on his phone while muttering to himself.

"He heard that All Might tried support gear once," explained Clay, "it apparently hurt his pride a little as the Number One Hero's biggest fan that he didn't know. He's been searching for pics and info for hours now." And the bags under his eyes were not pretty, something Uraraka had the unfortunate pleasure of finding out first hand.

"Well it's not like I can make fun of someone for having a passion," conceded Jirou, "just keep an eye on him and make sure he stays healthy. I kind of owe him for helping me organize my notes. Thanks for suggesting him by the way."

"Hey if there's one quirk my friend had even before getting the one he has now, it was note-taking," said Clay, "he even helped me and Slade organize our notes once upon a time. Worked well for me especially when I was trying to get used to the Japanese writing style. Seriously, it's no wonder people from this country draw so well, you need to be an amateur artist just to write your name."

"I kinda get that," said Jirou, "It's like moving from one type of instrument to another. There's different movements used for each one. I just hope we put on all the right moves at the concert."

"We'll give it plus ultra effort like always," said Clay, "and I know you especially are gonna give it your best. And if some of the students out there don't like us, well then it's little different from how things were before."

"How in the world do you keep up an outlook like that?" Questioned Jirou, "Are you saying you're not worried what other people are gonna think of us out there?"

"It's just something else I picked up from my Uncle and Mother," replied Clay as he leaned back against the couch, "you can't please everyone, so just work on pleasing the people who matter to you. Obviously that doesn't extend to saving people as a hero, but it's been helpful for getting through day to day life."

"You sound weirdly like Bakugou when you say that," Jirou pointed out, "he said we shouldn't do this performance for anyone else but ourselves, because it's not our fault in the first place that the villains have been attacking."

"Except for that one time they came to kidnap him because of his nasty attitude," Clay reminded her, "but in a weird way that I never thought could happen in a million years, I do agree with at least a bit of it. Oh no, maybe the world really is ending as we know it." Jirou snickered a bit at this statement.

"Well hopefully it'll last long enough for us to enjoy the festival," she said with a smile.

About the Same Time: Closed Development Studio

"It took a lot of effort to get this," said the Support Course student with visor-like shades as he held out his hand and produced a key card from his palm, "but it'll be worth it to see the looks on those 1A losers faces when they find a wrecked stage tomorrow." He slid the card into a reader then as the cylinder it was attached too hissed and opened up, revealing the mechanical suit he'd come to claim. "Hope you all sleep well tonight, because very soon, you're little performance shall be upstaged by one of the best and brightest of the Support Course, Doton Bori!"

**And so the time for the festival looms closer and closer as Class 1A works to put on their concert. Meanwhile, one of the less enthusiastic students has his own plans to thwart the show altogether. But in the meantime, I hope you all enjoyed this latest chapter and as always feel free to leave a comment or review about what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters. Be sure to stop in next time as Class 1A's show runs into a few snags in their preparations. 'Til then.**


	15. Dealing With Disapproval

**Dealing With Disapproval**

**Hello everyone and welcome to the latest chapter of Hailstorm Vol. 2! We're getting down to the wire on the season here, and with no guest review questions to answer it can only mean one thing, one to the story!**

Night Time: U.A. Gym Gamma

The month felt like it had flown by. The school festival would start tomorrow, and that's why Class 1A was currently in the gym putting the finishing touches on everything. "Okay everyone!" Called Kirishima, "We haven't got long before the gym closes, so let's get in one final check and run through before we leave!"

"Alright, here we go," Said Mina in a surprisingly serious voice as she counted off the tempo by clapping her hands. "Tap, tap, two, tap, tap, two and up!" The dance team moved along with the beat, taking the appropriate positions and movements until the last count where they all posed. Though Iida still looked like he was performing the robot for the entire routine. "Okay, now Aoyama center stage and Midoriya off-stage. And remember, focus your attention on the moves Midoriya, they're still too half-hearted."

"Roger," affirmed the green-haired boy as he went to take his place in the upper part of the stage.

"I'm getting a bit nervous about all of this," said Momo as she ran her part of the dance routine in her head for what must've been the thousandth time.

"Believe me you'll do fine," said Slade reassuringly with a hand on her shoulder, "Which is more than I can say for a certain exploding blonde." Said Blonde was currently getting told by Jirou for what must've also been the thousandth time not to improvise stuff during the performance.

"If you improvise anything weird it'll confuse the audience," explained Jirou as Bakugou grunted in his usual dismissive tone.

"I'm with her," said Clay, "we'll have plenty of fun while we're up there but the time to be throwing out improv phrases is past."

"It's not just him," said Tokoyami, "I too must resist such a notion now that my skills have improved somewhat."

"Well at least you know when and when not too," Slade pointed out before the doors to the gym burst open to reveal the snarling hero Hound Dog.

"It's already Nine 'O Clock!" Yelled Hound Dog, "Students should not be here past nine!"

"And that's our cue to leave," said Clay, "we'd all better rest up. We got an early start tomorrow."

A Short Time Later: U.A. Heights Alliance

Resting up had been the plan, except for one problem. "Woo, I can't sleep at all right now!" Cheered Kaminari.

"My excitements at maximum!" added Mineta who honestly looked like he could fall over asleep at any moment. And the tape holding his eyes open only added to that image.

"Will you two tone it down a little," said Mina, "some of us actually have managed to get to sleep ya know."

"I wonder if everyone will get as excited as we are," Iida thought aloud.

"I find it's a lot better not to think about stuff like that," Said Jirou, "worrying about getting embarrassed or just being nervous in general is the worst. Once you get onstage, the only thing left is to have a good time."

"But weren't you super embarrassed about this whole thing," Kaminari happily pointed out.

"That was different," defended Jirou while trying to hide the fact that she was still a bit embarrassed about that time.

"Well either way we've prepared to the best of our abilities," said Clay, "now all that's left is to put on a show. Whether or not everyone else likes it is up to them more than it is us. Hey Midoriya, there a problem over there?"

"I just noticed the rope we've been using for the harness is pretty frayed," replied Deku as he examined said piece of equipment, "it'll be dangerous if we try to use it in this condition."

"That's no biggie," assured Kaminari, "why not ask Yaoyorozu to make a new one?"

"Two reasons," Said Slade, "One: she's already asleep, and two, she's not our personal factory."

"But people use me as a charger all the time," grumbled Kaminari in response.

"This is what people mean when they say 'looking down on men,'" Added Mineta.

"Well you can always make use of a cloud rope," suggested Clay as he formed one from his hand, "I won't have to do my little shtick until after you fly the disco boy around the room anyway."

"I appreciate it Clay," said Midoriya, "but it's not really that big of a deal. I'll go buy a new rope first thing in the morning. I've already got morning training and I've been needing to purchase a couple of items for a few days now."

"But the performance starts at ten tomorrow, and most stores around here aren't open 'til nine," Kaminari pointed out.

"There is one," said Izuku, "about fifteen minutes from U.A. is a hardware store that opens at 8 am."

"Still cutting it pretty close there," said Kaminari as everyone began getting up to head to their rooms. "But I guess as long as you get back in time it'll turn out fine."

"Well we might do this tomorrow, but let's give it one more go this evening night owls," Said Mina, "Let's, MAKE THIS SHOW A SUCCESS!" Everyone gave an affirmative 'Yeah!' to one degree of enthusiasm or another before heading off to bed for the night.

Seven A.M.: U.A. Gym Gamma

Slade Mason was not one for showing outward excitement very often, or to be more precise his outward expressions of excitement were usually quite tame in comparison to some of the more outgoing students of U.A. High. That did not, however, mean he wasn't super excited about today. In fact, he was so excited that he'd even woken up before his own alarm went off and found that it was impossible to go back to sleep. So to keep himself from going stir crazy waiting on the time of the concert to arrive, the density shifter had opted to go into the gym early and start doing a bit of prep work.

"Good thing the staff opens this place up early most days," commented the U.A. student as he made his way around to the side entrance of the gym. It wasn't that it was a long walk to the stage, but Slade thought it'd be better to just go ahead and enter from backstage to start the prep. As he entered, however, he noticed that something was more than a little amiss. Someone was standing in front of the stage, and they were laughing their head off at being there for some reason.

"Ahahaha!" Laughed the unknown individual, who Slade observed was wearing a U.A. uniform with slightly long hair and visor-like shades over his eyes. "Oh it's going to be close but oh so sweet to see the looks on those Class 1A showoff's faces!" 'I think I might now that guy,' thought Slade as a name flashed through his mind.

"Hey," Slade called out, startling the individual as he looked to see who was present, "Aren't you with the Support Course? Doto, Dodo, Dotty-."

"It's Doton Bori!" exclaimed the U.A. student angrily, "and what in the world are you doing here Slade Mason of Class 1A?!"

"Oh yeah, now I remember," said Slade as he snapped his fingers in realization, "I got into a heated debate with you once about proper balancing on Power Loader's suit. You seemed to think adding a large drill attachment to the right arm wouldn't impede its movement or cause it to topple over."

"The suit is designed with powerful stabilizers to keep it from doing just that!" exclaimed Doton Bori, "Imbalanced loads were a consideration in its construction!"

"Temporary imbalanced loads," Slade pointed out, "but that was then and this is now, which reminds me. I suppose I should answer your question: I am here because I wanted to get some early prep for our show out of the way. The better question is, what are you doing here? I somehow get the feeling it isn't to help us out."

"Quite right," said Doton as he adjusted his shades, "if you recall I apparently lost that argument because Power Loader himself pointed out that the suit would lose maneuverability. But I'm not here to bring up old arguments from long past, I'm here to insure Class 1A is finally put in their place."

"By standing and laughing in front of an empty stage," Questioned Slade with a raised eyebrow, "I mean I'm sure you've got an actual plan here, but so far I'm not seeing it."

"That's just the type of dismissive attitude I'd expect from one who spends all their time in the spotlight," spat the Support Course Student, "yes the hero course was always big news but now that you're class has gone and gotten itself involved in multiple incidents taking on villains, it's like the rest of us don't even exist anymore. All I ever hear about news from U.A. anymore is 'Class 1A this' or 'Class 1A that'. Do you know how hard it's been for other courses to get any recognition ever since you came on the scene?"

"I'm being dismissive because once again your argument is a bit off-premise," replied Slade, "I'll grant that getting recognition is part of what our and most every class has to do in order to get a shot at a good Hero agency. But not a single one of us asked for those villain attacks. The USJ incident was villains going after All Might, The Training Camp attack was villains just happening to be after a student from our class. The sports festival is the only time where we were actively trying to gain recognition and the support and business courses still got a chance to shine along with us."

"And yet here you all are now, putting on a concert to make yourselves look good by acting like you actually care about how we feel," said Doton, "If not for your class this year's school festival wouldn't have faced possible cancellation!"

Slade let out a sigh. "Let me make one thing clear right now," said Slade, "we've been taught to put our best into what we do at this school. That means if we're at a sports festival we give it our all, and in the case of the school festival, even though it's the other course's time to shine, that doesn't mean we don't still do our best. And to be perfectly honest, holding a grudge against our class for stuff that's out of our control in the first place says a lot more about how bad your attitude's are than it does ours. Do any of you even care that several members of your own school have been nearly killed on multiple occasions? Because from where I'm standing it looks like you're all just thinking about yourselves and how inconvenienced you are, never once raising the question whether or not we're okay always being in the wrong place at the wrong time!"

"I already have an answer for you on that one," said Doton Bori as machinery suddenly erupted from his back and seemed to encase his body, in Power Loader's suit! "I'm not sure if I ever explained how my quirk 'body storage space' works! You see I'm able to absorb inorganic objects many times larger than I am-."

"By breaking them down to an atomic level," interrupted Slade, "then, once you need something you release it by returning the atoms to their original shape. Basic conservation of matter."

"Oh you even ruined my explanation!" Yelled a now irritated Support Course Student as he wound up and brought the suit's left arm down on Slade. Fortunately, the hero course student had already upped his density upon seeing the suit released and blocked the blow with his right arm, though that didn't keep him from sinking into the floor slightly. "This is exactly what I'm talking about, you and your whole little class stealing everyone else's thunder!"

"Oh give me a break," said Slade as he managed to shove the mechanical arm to the side and went in with a straight jab which Doton blocked with the suit's other arm. "Even if all of the shit we've gone through didn't happen you'd still hate us for showing you all up! But if us outshining you is the problem then work harder!" The density shifter proceeded to deliver a heavy kick to the mech's side, causing it to stumble back slightly before it righted itself and retaliated by swinging both fists at Slade, who lowered his density to jump over them.

Then just as quickly, Slade upped his density and landed on the outstretched arms, pushing them into the ground. "You just don't get it," retorted Doton Bori as he strained the mech's outstretched limbs to throw Slade off before charging and laying into the density shifter with blow after heavy blow, "it doesn't matter how hard we work when all of the good stuff keeps happening to you guys! It's like the universe is practically throwing your class a bone!" As he uttered his last sentence, he tried to pull back the mech's right arm for another swing, only to notice that it seemed to be stuck.

"You really wanna call getting attacked over and over again by crazed maniacs or always being at the place where trouble shows up the universe throwing us a bone?!" Said Slade as the clearing dust revealed him to be holding onto the large hand of the mech at near max density, "If anything it often feels like the universe wants to kick our collective asses!" He let go of the mechanical arm as he said this last bit, causing the still strained limb to practically fly back as Doton had been pulling the whole time, causing him to stumble back. The 1A student then leapt forward and to the side at low density before jumping back at high density and ramming into the side of the unbalanced mech's 'knee'.

"Wait, this thing shouldn't fall over that easily," exclaimed Doton Bori as the large suit slipped and crashed to the ground. As he attempted to get back up, the mech was forced back down by Slade standing on it at max density.

"This suit was designed with Power Loader's specific measurements, body weight and quirk in mind," said Slade, "as a Support Course Student claiming to have pride in what they do, why would you stoop to using not only someone else's invention but a teacher's at that?" He dropped his right foot down next to his opponent's head, denting the metal a bit as the student grew greatly intimidated by the large hero course student now filling his vision.

"M-my specialty is in modification of hero gear," said a stuttering Doton Bori, "I-I create add-ons for costumes that help in combat. I don't actually have any inventions I can use for fighting."

"Is that so," sighed Slade as he reached down and yanked out the control circuit connected to the helmet, "I guess it explains why you know how to work this suit but not how to fight with it. But given your surprise at seeing me I guess you weren't expecting a fight."

"My plan was to tear down the stage and escape before you all showed up," Admitted Doton Bori, "as much as I dislike your class, one fact I can't dispute is that you're all pretty good fighters. Though I never realized how good until just this moment."

"It's like I said," replied Slade as he held his hand out, "we work really hard, often times because we have too. Otherwise with our luck, we'd have been dead a long time ago. If such circumstances did hit another one of the classes, I've no doubt they'd all come out of it a bit tougher too. Now come on, let's get you back to the Development Studio."

"What," said a surprised Doton Bori, "but aren't you going to report me? I literally just told you I came here to tear down your stage."

"It's not like either of us really has time for that," Slade pointed out, "this is the school festival after all, everyone's supposed to be having fun. If we get Power Loader's suit back to where it belongs quickly enough, you should still have time to prep your stuff for the show. After all, this is the Support Course's time to shine, so shine." Even with his visor-style shades on, Slade could tell this apparent troublemaker was stunned. But in another moment, he grabbed hold of his hand while reabsorbing Power Loader's suit back into his body.

"I guess I owe you and your class an apology," said the Support Course Student, "I'd just assumed at this point that no matter what we did you'd just upstage us all. And after actually talking to you more, I realize I was also wrong in assuming you looked down on us."

"You can chalk most of that up to Bakugou," said Slade, "his arrogance is off the scale half the time, which is actually still an improvement over what it used to be. Most of us Class 1A students are just doing our best to keep up with the challenges that face us. Kind of like how the support course is always coming up with new innovations in a constantly changing world."

"Speaking of which, I need to get my own project ready," said Doton Bori, "and again, sorry about trying to trash your performance."

"Do a few good tweaks to my gear later and we'll call it even," said Slade as the two made their way back out of the gym.

A Couple Hours Later: Gym Gamma

"Cutting it more than a little close weren't ya Midoriya," said Clay as he and the rest of the class slowly gathered on the stage.

"Yeah, I lost track of time while I was out shopping," said the Green-haired boy as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Uh huh," said Slade, "and you got that many bruises from just falling down the stairs?"

"W-well you see I was-," Izuku responded nervously before Clay cut him off.

"Relax, we'll talk about it later," he said as he took his position at the keyboard, "right now we got a show to put on." A murmur of agreement ran through the student body as everyone else took their positions. The lights shut off then as the curtains drew back to reveal the massive crowd of students who'd gathered for the performance.

"Alright then," said Bakugou from his position on the drums, "LET'S KILL 'EM WITH OUR SOUND!" And thus, the performance began.

**And now it's time to rock and roll! In the next chapter. I know, bit of a douche move cutting it off right there, but I have a reason. I've decided to make the next chapter the season finale for this story as the U.A. students don't do much during Endeavor's rise to number one battle. If you all have a different opinion on the matter, feel free to let me know the usual way, as well as what you liked/disliked or if you've got any neat ideas for future chapters in your comments and reviews. Be sure to stop in next time as the U.A. School Festival gets underway.**


	16. Remember to Smile

**Remember to Smile**

**Are we at the end of another season already, well how about that. First, just in case, a little disclaimer: All properties are the rights of their respective owners, I only own my OCs. No guest review questions today, but I would like to take a moment to say thank you to everyone whose stuck with this and my other stories up to this point, it means a lot. Now without further ado, onto the season finale!**

School Festival: U.A. Gym Gamma

It was the moment of truth, and boy what a moment it was gonna be. The gym was absolutely packed from front to back and wall to wall. Clay hadn't thought too much about it himself, but perhaps there had been at least a few people who were genuinely looking forward to their little show. A show which almost had a hole in it when Midoriya arrived late from the store, likely due to a fight he'd somehow gotten caught up in. But as the lights shut off and the curtains parted, the only thing left to do now was perform as the crowd let out a cheer.

"Do your best first years, you can do it, Yaoyorozu, Yaoyorozu!" Cheered the crowd from one section or another. 'Well we know at least one person they're rooting for,' mused Clay and Slade as they looked out into the audience to see a familiar head of blue hair sitting atop the leader of U.A.'s big three, 'But we've all got our reasons for wanting this concert to go well, so let's give it all we got.' A sentiment the rest of Class 1A seemed to share as Bakugou said his next words aloud.

"Let's kill all of U.A., with our sound!" A powerful explosion was let loose then as the lights came on and the music began. The sound of the instrument's intensity surprised everyone as Jirou, with a smile on her face spoke into the microphone.

"Thank you all for coming out today!" Cheered Jirou as the dancers moved in time with the rhythm, the band played their parts in time and the rocker girl herself began to sing:

**What am I to be?  
What is my calling?  
I gave up giving up, I'm ready to go  
The future's left unseen  
It all depends on me  
Put it on the line to follow my dream  
Yeah**

'Damn she's good,' thought Clay with a smile of his own as he tipped his shades, something he just hadn't been able to resist for the performance, a bit while continuing his part on the keyboard. Meanwhile, Slade jammed out his own guitar part while taking the occasional glance at Momo, smiling at the fact that she was smiling.

**Tried all my life, I've tried to find  
Something that makes me hold on and never let go  
Oh**

**Hero too, I am a hero too  
My heart is set (my heart is set) and I won't back down  
Hero too, strength doesn't make a hero  
True heroes (true heroes) stand up for what they believe  
So wait and see  
So wait and see**

Next came Aoyama's stunt as he and Izuku leapt towards one another, linking arms before the One for All holder flung him into the air. The navel laser student used his momentum and spun while releasing his quirk, creating an effect similar to a disco ball before being caught by Ojiro on the way down. To say it was well received by the crowd was an understatement.

**What do they think of me?  
Who do they think I'll be?  
I could not care less, I don't wanna know  
Am I doing right?  
Am I satisfied?  
I wanna live my life like it's meant to be  
Yeah**

**Tried all my life, I've tried to find  
Something that makes me hold on and never let go  
Oh**

And now came the time for Midoriya's part with the rope pull as he rushed off stage while Aoyama moved to get the piece of equipment attached to the harness he was wearing. Once it was set, that's when the ideas of the effects team all came together: Todoroki formed an oval-shaped ramp of ice, Koda released a number of pigeons, Clay sent out a few of his clouds and Momo rolled up her sleeves to fire streamers into the crowd. It all culminated in an extravagant spectacle as Aoyama was pulled up and acted as a moving light while Kirishima poured sparkling dust from the rafters.

**Hero too, I am a hero too  
My heart is set (my heart is set) and I won't back down  
Hero too, strength doesn't make a hero  
True heroes (true heroes) stand up for what they believe  
So wait and see**

**People will judge for no reason at all  
Yeah they might try  
To say your dream's dumb, don't listen  
They may look down on me and count me out  
I'm going my own way  
They may look down on me and count me out  
I'm a hero, I've got music**

**Hero too, I am a hero too  
My heart is set and I won't back down  
Hero too, strength doesn't make a hero  
True heroes stand up for what they believe  
Yeah I'll be**

Uraraka and Tsuyu added some crowd interaction with the frog girl swinging the gravity user out amongst the gathered students, high-fiving people and causing them to float while several of the dancers leapt onto Clay's clouds, continuing their performance on the moving platforms.

**Hero too, I am a hero too  
My heart is set and I won't back down  
Hero too, strength doesn't make a hero  
True heroes stand up for what they believe  
So wait and see**

**I have met so many heroes in my life  
Gave me the strength and courage to survive  
Gave me the power to smile everyday  
Now it's my turn to be the one to make you smile**

But the most moving sight of all, was when timid little Eri, who'd suffered for so long, smiled and even cheered at the sight. It was the most fun she'd probably ever had in her entire life. And it made Clay glad he'd worn the shades, he could almost swear there were a couple of tears falling. As the final notes struck, there wasn't a single person in the gym who wasn't cheering to one degree or another.

A Short Time Later: Gym Gamma

"I have never seen so many blatant rip-offs in a single performance in my life!" Said Clay and Slade in summation of Class 1B's play. True to Monoma's word, the script had packed in elements from Prisoner of Azkaban, Lord of the Rings, Romeo and Juliet, and even the famed Star Wars line: 'I am your Father'. Both hero trainees did admittedly like the occasional reference here and there, but an entire act of nothing but references could get old real fast.

"I'm just glad our own performance went off without a hitch," said Iida as he pushed a cart of Todoroki's melting ice away. Any response Clay or Slade would've had to that was interrupted by Midoriya running back into the gym. He'd been explaining the real reason as to why he'd been late, a battle with some internet villain named Gentle Criminal, to Hound Dog, All Might and the other teachers. It was about this time that Mirio Togata and Eri managed to make it back into the gym as well.

"Ah, Midoriya, Clay," said the lead member of U.A.'s big three with his trademark smile, "You guys did fantastic work up there."

"It was scary at first with that loud noise," said a smiling and clearly happy Eri, "but then everyone was hopping around to the music, and a flash before Deku went away, then it was cold with a spinning light. I think someone said 'wow', and I said 'wow' too!" She tilted her head in confusion for a moment when Midoriya wiped his eyes, but he was smiling when he said his next words.

"I'm glad you had a good time Eri," he said as he tried to keep more tears of joy from leaking out. Clay wasn't faring much better.

"Yeah but you two shouldn't be!" exclaimed Mineta as he came by carrying some large ice chunks, "one of you was already late and now you're both slacking off!"

"Midoriya's had a harder day than you, so lay off," said Clay as he brought one of his clouds by and sent Mineta sliding away to where Bakugou was melting the ice. "But he is right, we should probably finish up here before getting to the rest of the festival."

"Right," said Izuku before turning to Eri, "Don't worry, we'll be done soon. So just stick with Mirio for now." The horned girl nodded in understanding as the two U.A. students went off to continue their clean up. As they proceeded, the occasional words of 'good job' and 'we had fun' were thrown their way from other students outside of the gym. Class 1A responded humbly to all of them, save for a couple of students from the support course. One was relatively tall with a long chin and duck tail hairdo while the other was a girl with short pigtails.

"We're really sorry!" They both said, "We watched your performance to criticize it!" The two proceeded to run off after that.

"I wonder if those were some of the students who were feeling stressed that Mister Aizawa mentioned," commented Kirishima. "But if they were, then that means our feelings really did reach them!"

"Yes," said Iida as he adjusted his glasses, "but I'm sure there were some students who didn't watch, so we must continue on so that our feelings rea-."

"I think it'll be fine," said one of the other students with a smile, "we heard what you all wanted to accomplish with this show. Well we got it loud and clear, so now we'll tell the others and pass on your feelings to those who didn't watch your show."

"Thank you for your kindness!" Said Iida as he bowed respectfully, and in his usual stiff manner.

"Well I got a better idea," said Bakugou as he stepped forward, "find all the ones who didn't watch it and bring them here!"

"Hey it's fine, jeez," Said Ojiro as he had to pull Bakugou back. For obvious reasons it was better if his particular feelings didn't reach the rest of the students.

"Could we hurry this up?!" Exclaimed Mineta as he came racing by at a surprising speed with more ice to dispose of, "If we don't hurry we're not gonna get good seats for the Beauty Pageant!"

Shortly Thereafter: Beauty Pageant Stage

"Let it be said that the only reason I'm here is because Eri wanted to be here," commented Clay as the Beauty Pageant got under way. A large outdoor stage with a catwalk had been set up specifically for the event, and the current contestant out was Itsuka Kendo, who looked surprisingly good in the blue dress she wore. It lacked shoulders, allowing her muscular arms the necessary freedom for a martial arts demo. Said demo involved her quickly smashing through multiple boards with her well-honed chopping technique, which received a number of applause.

Next up was Kenranzaki riding atop a solid gold version of her own face with tank treads and arms that stood a good ten to twelve feet tall. "Now I know where the majority of her votes come from," commented Slade, "the Support Course loves her machinery." Clay and most of the other class simply shrugged at that while little Eri wondered why a beauty pageant had a giant face rolling around everywhere.

Next up, the final contestant and star they'd all come to see, Nejire Hado, whose elegant form was covered by a light blue dress which went down to her knees and resembled swan feathers. 'I recall she tried to be flashier than Kenranzaki last year,' thought Clay, something he'd learned while giving Eri a tour of U.A., 'wonder what she's got planned this time around?' His question would be answered in the form of Nejire floating into the air with the yellow energy of her quirk trailing behind her, creating a sparkling affect as she smiled happily and floated around, almost like an innocent fairy. To put it simply, her performance was pure elegance, a magical and entrancing dance which left everyone in awe as she landed back on the stage as if she weighed nothing at all.

It came as no surprise to Clay, Mirio and Midoriya when the crowd gave a thunderous roar of approval at the sight. "The results for the pageant shall be announced at 5 PM!" Called the show organizer as the crowd began to disperse.

"Guess we'll need to kill some time," said Clay as he crossed his arms, "so, what should we do next?"

"I think I might have a few ideas on that," said Mirio with a smile on his face. The day would fly by from that point on as the group visited food stands, a haunted house, ran an obstacle course, admired the various inventions of the Support Course and took pictures of each other doing various funny activities with cardboard cutouts. Five O'Clock rolled around in no time and the results announced were still a bit surprising, but welcome. Nejire Hado had at last achieved her goal of being the beauty pageant queen. As far as good days went, this had been one of the best at U.A. so far that year.

But as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end as Izuku, Mirio and Clay stood at the gates of U.A. with Eri and Aizawa. "I hope you were able to have a lot of fun today," said the One for All wielder, "but before you go, surprise!" The U.A. student produced a candy apple from practically out of nowhere.

"Where in the world did you get that?!" said a surprised Mirio, "I couldn't find them anywhere."

"I was worried there wouldn't be any after I looked at the program for the festival," explained Izuku, "so I bought some ingredients while I was out this morning. It turned out to be a lot easier to make than I expected, though I still had to borrow some food coloring from Sato."

"Well you should be able to see her again soon enough," said Aizawa.

"This tastes even sweeter than I imagined!" gushed Eri happily with a cute smile and a bit of the candy coloring on the side of her mouth.

"I guess we both better learn how to make them," said Clay as he patted her head, "just in case. 'Til then, take care of yourself Eri."

"I will!" She replied happily before continuing to nibble at the treat Midoriya had gotten her. With a final good bye, the U.A. students all retreated back onto the school grounds.

"Ah, what a day," said the Cloud Wielder as he stretched a bit, "seems like forever since the last time we managed to have any fun."

"I hear that," said Slade as he fell into step next to them, "it feels like everything we've had to do lately is complicated by one thing or another."

"Well we all knew going in that being heroes wasn't an easy endeavor," said Mirio with his usual smile on his face, "though I still manage to have a good time most days."

"That's probably because you can actually walk a few blocks without running into a villain attack," Clay pointed out, "Both Slade and Midoriya had to get into fights today just to make sure the concert could still happen."

"It wasn't really that big of a deal," said Izuku as he rubbed his head, "what made all of this worth it was being able to make Eri smile again."

"I suppose you got a good point there," said Clay as his expression grew thoughtful, "we've all had to be so focused on doing big things to get noticed that it's easy to forget not all heroics are flashy. Sometimes all you got to do to be someone's hero is just be there to help out. Give a gift, a reassuring word, a vote of confidence, treat someone to a meal, or even just being a shoulder to cry on can make all the difference in the life of a total stranger."

"Yeah, it really can," said Midoriya with a slight sniffle, "thank you both again, for being my friends."

"Don't sweat it," said Slade as he put a hand on his shoulder, "you've always had a good heart, and having you as a friend has been life changing for us too." As usual, Izuku had to do his best to stop the waterworks upon hearing Slade's thoughts on the matter.

"Uh, Clay," said a voice from a nearby tree. Looking over, the group say it was actually Jirou peeking out from behind the trunk, "could I talk to you for a bit?" Everyone else glanced at the cloud user, awaiting his response.

"You guys go on ahead," said Clay, noticing Jirou was a bit apprehensive for some reason, "I'll catch up with you back at the dorms." His friends seemed to accept this easily enough as thy bid him a quick farewell before he stepped over to where the rocker girl was. "Something wrong? You seem a bit fidgety."

"Well I had a good confidence booster with the show earlier," replied Jirou as she slowly approached Clay, "but actually walking up to you now, I can feel it sinking fast."

"You got nothing to worry about from me," said Clay, "I mentioned it during the cleanup, but you put on a damn good performance up there."

"Yeah, it was a good feeling being able to take something I love and use it to help others," said Jirou, "and I have you and everyone else to thank for encouraging me."

"That's what friends are for after all," said Clay, "and I need to thank you too. The amazing music you chose for us to play helped a little girl remember how to smile. We saved her from a villain, but it was your song that saved her innocence." Jirou's face turned bright red upon hearing the praise as she nervously tapped her jacks together.

"Yeah, about the whole 'friend' thing," said Jirou, "the reason I'm nervous is because I'm not sure if we can be after what I'm about to do." Clay tilted his head in confusion, not sure what to say when Jirou suddenly leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. The cloud wielder froze in place as a feeling he couldn't even begin to describe coursed through his body. His heart pounded in his ears and the temperature felt like it had skyrocketed, yet at the same time he felt happy in a way for some reason.

When she pulled away after another moment, Clay was stunned beyond words. "I-I know this seems, o-out of the blue. But for a while now, you've been my hero." The rocker girl turned and hurried away then, her face very much resembling a tomato. As for Clay, when he finally regained some cognitive function he reached up and felt where Jirou had kissed him. 'I guess today's been life changing for more than a few of us,' he thought as he looked towards the sky. And for the first time in a while, the future looked brighter than ever.

**And here we are, at the end of another season of My Hero Academia and another season of Hailstorm. Once again I'd like to thank all of you, my fellow readers, for your continued support and input on this and all my other stories. It really helps keep me going on the tough days. So let me know what you think of Vol.2 so far in your comments and reviews and feel free to throw any neat ideas my way as well. And with luck, I may see you all next season! 'Til then.**


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